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DR. (iODMAN

oC a

THE LIBRARY

OF

THE UNIVERSITY
OF CALIFORNIA

PRESENTED BY

PROF. CHARLES A. KOFOID AND
MRS. PRUDENCE W. KOFOID

RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

BY

JOHN D. GODMAN, M. D

TO WHICH ARE ADDED

of a

to

REYNELL COATES, M. D.

PHILADELPHIA:

THOMAS T. ASH KEY AND BIDDLE.

1833.

PREFACE.

The beautiful sketches, under the title of " The Ram-
bles of a Naturalist," which first appeared in "The
Friend," a religious and literary weekly journal of this
city, were lately published collectively in Waldie's Select
Circulating Library, and being deemed worthy of still
further dissemination, they have been dressed in the
present garb, and thus offered to public patronage.
Though they were dashed off on the spur of the occa-
sion, they possess all the characteristic freshness and
vigour of the author's style, and were among the last ef-
fusions of his vigorous mind. They were written while
he was confined to the bed of sickness, from which he
was removed in a few weeks afterwards to the tomb
and the series consequently interrupted. The sale of
the present edition may contribute to more pious uses
than mere commercial profits.

6 PREFACE.

Asa suitable accompaniment, the " Reminiscences"
of Dr. Reynell Coates, likewise first published in " The
Friend," have been appended ; the whole forming a
delightful pocket companion for a spring or summer
ramble.

The biographical sketch is from the pen of Dr. Drake,
of Cincinnati, and first appeared in the " Western Jour-
nal of the Medical and Physical Sciences."

"The great characteristics of Dr. Godman's mind,"
says a friend, who knew him well, " were his retentive
memory, an unwearied industry and quick perception,
and his capacity of concentrating all his powers upon
any given object of pursuit. What he had once read or
observed, he rarely, if ever, forgot. Hence it was, that
although his early education was much neglected, he
became an excellent linguist, and made himself master
of Latin, French, and German, besides acquiring a
knowledge of Greek, Italian and Spanish. He had read
the best works in all these languages, and wrote with
facility the Latin and French.

" His powers of observation were quick, patient, keen
and discriminating ; and it was these qualities that ren-
dered him so admirable a naturalist. He came to the
study of natural history as an investigator of facts, and
not as a pupil of the schools ; and while he regarded
systems and nomenclature with perhaps too little respect,
his great aim was to learn the instincts, the structure and
the habits of all animated beings. This science was his

PREFACE. 7

favourite pursuit, and he devoted himself to it with inde-
fatigable zeal. He has been heard to say, that in investi-
gating the habits of the shrew mole, he walked many
hundred miles. Those parts of his natural history in
which he relates the results of his own observation, are
among the most interesting essays on that subject in our
language. This praise is due in a still greater degree to
his Rambles of a Naturalist, which are not inferior in
poetical beauty and vivid and accurate description, to the
celebrated letters of Gilbert White on the Natural History
of Selbourne. These essays were among the last pro-
ductions of his pen, and were written in the intervals of
acute pain and extreme debility. They form a mere
sketch of what he intended, and had he lived to com-
plete them, he would have left a work and a name of
enduring popularity.

" There were few subjects of general literature, except-
ing the pufe and mixed mathematics, with which Dr.
Godman was not more or less familiar. Among other
pursuits to which his attention had been turned, was the
study of ancient coins, of which he had acquired a criti-
cal knowledge.

" The powers of his mind were always buoyant. His
eagerness in the pursuit of knowledge seemed like the
impulse of gnawing hunger and unquenchable thirst.
Neither adversity nor disease could allay it, and had it
pleased Providence to heal his mortal wound, and prolong

8 PREFACE.

his life and strength, he would have borne away the palm
from all his contemporaries.

"The fine imagination and deep enthusiasm of Dr.
Godman occasionally burst forth in impassioned poetry.
He wrote verse and prose with almost equal facility, and
had he lived and enjoyed leisure to prune the exuber-
ance of his style, and to bestow the last polish upon his
labours, he would have ranked as one of the great mas-
ters of our language, both in regard to the curious felicity,
and the strength and clearness of his diction. The fol-
lowing specimens of his poetical compositions are se-
lected less for their intrinsic excellence, than for the
picture which they furnish of his private meditations."

PREFACE.

A MIDNIGHT MEDITATION.

'Tis midnight's solemn hour ! now wide unfurled

Darkness expands her mantle o'er the world :

The fire-fly's lamp has ceased its fitful gleam

The cricket's chirp is hushed ; the boding scream

Of the grey owl is stilled ; the lofty trees

Scarce wave their summits to the failing breeze ;

All nature is at rest, or seems to sleep j

'Tis thine alone, oh man ! to watch and weep !

Thine 'tis to feel thy system's sad decay,

As flares the taper of thy life away

Beneath the influence of fell disease : —

Thine 'tis to know the want of mental ease

Springing from memory of time misspent;

Of slighted blessings ; deepest discontent,

And riotous rebellion 'gainst the laws

Of health, truth, heaven, to win the world's applause !

Such was thy course, Eugenio, such thy hardened heart,

Till mercy spoke, and death unsheathed the dart,

Twanged his unerring bow, and drove the steel,

Too deep to be withdrawn, too wide the wound to heal ;

Yet left of life a feebly glimmering ray,

Slowly to sink and gently ebb away.

10 PREFACE.

— And yet, how blest am I ?

While myriad others lie

In agony of fever or of pain,

With parching tongue and burning eye,

Or fiercely throbbing brain ;

My feeble frame, though spoiled of rest,

Is not of comfort dispossest.

My mind awake, looks up to thee,

Father of mercy ! whose blest hand I see

In all things acting for our good,

Howe'er thy mercies be misunderstood.

where the waning moon
Slowly surmounts yon dark tree tops,
Her light increases steadily, and soon
The solemn night her stole of darkness drops :
Thus to my sinking soul in hours of gloom,
The cheering beams of hope resplendent come,
Thus the thick clouds which sin and sorrow rear
Are changed to brightness, or swift disappear.
Hark ! that shrill note proclaims approaching day ;
The distant east is streaked with lines of gray ;
Faint warblings from the neighbouring groves arise,
The tuneful tribes salute the brightening skies.
Peace breathes around ; dim visions o'er me creep,
The weary night outwatched, thank God ! I too may
sleep.

PREFACE. 1 1

Lines written under a feeling ef the immediate approach
of Death.

The damps of death are on my brow, the chill is in my

heart,
My blood has almost ceased to flow, my hopes of life

depart ;

The valley and the shadow before me open wide,
But thou, Oh Lord ! even there wilt be my guardian and

my guide.

For what is pain, if thou art nigh its bitterness to quell ?
And where death's boasted victory, his last triumphant

spell?

Oh! Saviour, in that hour when mortal strength is nought,
When nature's agony comes on, and every anguished

thought

Springs in the breaking heart a source of darkest woe,
Be nigh unto my soul, nor permit the floods o'erflow.
To thee ! to thee alone ! dare I raise my dying eyes;
Thou didst for all atone, by thy wondrous sacrifice ;
Oh ! in thy mercy's richness extend thy smiles on me,
And let my soul outspeak thy praise throughout eternity !

" Beneath the above stanzas is the following note:
' Rather more than a year has elapsed since the above
was first written. Death is now certainly near at hand ;

12 PREFACE.

but my sentiments remain unchanged, except that my
reliance on the Saviour is stronger.'

" This reliance on the mercies of God through Christ
Jesus, became indeed the habitual frame of his mind ;
and imparted to the closing scenes of his life a solemnity
and a calmness, a sweet serenity and a holy resignation,
which robbed death of its sting, and the grave of its
victory. It was a melancholy sight to witness the pre-
mature extinction of such a spirit ; yet the dying couch
on which genius, and virtue, and learning thus lay
prostrated, beamed with more hallowed lustre, and taught
a more salutary lesson than could have been imparted
by the proudest triumphs of intellect. The memory of
Dr. Godman, his blighted promise, and his unfinished
labours, will long continue to call forth the vain regrets
of men of science and learning. There are those who
treasure up in their hearts as a more precious recollection,
his humble faith and his triumphant death, and who can
meet with an eye of pity, the scornful glance of the
scoffer, and the infidel, at being told that if Dr. Godman
was a philosopher, he was also a Christian."

MEMOIR

DR. JOHN D. GODMAN

Of Dr. Godman's early years, we have received a
number of interesting memoranda, from his first medical
preceptor, Dr. Luckey, now of Circleville, in this state.
According to this gentleman, Dr. G. was born at Wil-
mington, in the state of Delaware. At an early period
he lost his parents, and was left without patrimony, or
deprived of it. Dr. Luckey first saw him in 1810, when
he was fifteen years old. The doctor was, at that time, a
senior student in the office of Dr. Thomas E. Bond, of
Baltimore. " The office," says Dr. L., " was fitted up
with taste, and boys, attracted by its appearance, would
frequently drop in, to gaze on the labelled jars and
drawers. Among them I discovered, one evening, an in-
teresting lad, who was amusing himself with the manner
in which his comrades pronounced the ' hard words,'
with which the furniture was labelled. He appeared to
2

14 ME3IOIR OF

be quite an adept in the Latin language. A strong
curiosity soon prompted me to enquire ' Who are you ?'
' Don't you recollect,' says he, * that you visited a boy
at Mr. Creery's, who had a severe attack of bilious colic ?'
' I do. But what is your name, my little boy ?' He
was small of his age. ' My name, sir, is John D. God-
man.' 'Did you study the Latin language with Mr.
Creery ?' ' No, he does not teach any but an English
school.' ' Do you intend to prosecute your studies
alone ?' ' I do. And I will, if I live, make myself a
Latin, Greek, and French scholar."

In the autumn of 1811, Dr. Luckey commenced the
practice of medicine in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, and
the next summer received a letter from his protege,
stating that he had been bound an apprentice to the
printer of a newspaper. With this business, he was,
from the beginning, exceedingly dissatisfied, as he evinced
in his numerous letters to Dr. Luckey.

In one of these, dated July 23d, 1812, he expressed the
opinion, that it was worse than " cramping his genius
over a pestle and mortar" — it was " cramping it over a
font of types, where there are words without ideas."

Addicted to reading, and aspiring to a more intellectual
pursuit, it is not probable that our young printer was
much devoted to the drudgery of the office, or performed
his duties con amore ; which may sufficiently explain the
origin of the difficulties set forth in the following
paragraph from a subsequent letter to the same.

DR. GODMAIS. 15

" Every thing is in slatu quo with me. The same
series of oppressions, impositions and insults are still my
lot to bear. But I will not bear them long. From the
oldest to the youngest, master and man, all seem to have
a disposition to peck at me. You will (or may be) sur-
prised to hear that I can never make a printer. It is an
erroneous opinion of some people, that no one can make
a printer unless he be a scholar. On the contrary,
scholars can hardly, if at all, be printers. I would not
wish you to think that 1 count myself a scholar. On the
contrary I think myself no scholar."

The following extract from another letter, dated Oc-
tober 23d, 1813, shows that, at this early period, young
Godman was threatened with the malady which ultimately
destroyed him.

" The disease for which I mentioned a recipe in ray
last has commenced its direful effects on my poor body.
A continued pain in iny breast, and at night a slow but
burning fever, convince me that I am travelling down a
much frequented road to the place where disease has no
effect. This my friend is no phantasy. I do not say it
irom affectation. I feel it I cannot telieve in this
disease being contagious, or I should be certain that I
have caught it. I sleep with a youth who was born with
it and has it fully."

In the opinion of Dr. L., the deceased, at that early
period, laboured under a hypertrophy of the heart.

Through the whole of his apprenticeship, young God-

16 MEMOIR OF

man had a strong desire to study medicine, but his
guardian was opposed to any change of destination.
Early in the month of January, 1814, he writes to
Dr. L.—

"At the suggestion of Dr. Anderson, I have deter-
mined to commence the study of chemistry, as he says it
will be a great improvement to the mind, and more so,
I may be enabled, the ensuing season (if I should live so
long) to attend the lectures at the University (of Mary,
land,) and it seems to run greatly in Dr. A.'s head that I
shall one day be a physician. How far this surmise may
be right, time will disclose. It may indeed so happen,
and should I study chemistry now, I shall not have it to
do at a future period. I must, however, ask your opinion
in this affair."

On the 24th of the same month, he writes to the same
gentleman —

" I have read the catechetical part of Parke's Chemis-
try, and I can assure you I liked it not a little. But my
knowledge, so far as I may obtain it, will only be
theoretical."

In the same letter he sets forth his early views of the
Christian religion :

" I have not ever had a fixed determination to read the
works of that Modern Serpent,* nor had I determined
not to do it ; and it seems to me surprising, that a fellow

* Thomas Paine.

DE. GODMAX. 17

student of yours should recommend the perusal of such
writings as Thomas Paine's.

" I had, thank heaven, before I asked you the question,
and still have, the "Apology for the Bible," by the cele-
brated Lord Regius, of Landaff, (Bishop Watson.)
There is a great comfort in the belief of that glorious
doctrine of salvation, that teaches us to look to the Great
Salvator for happiness in a future life ; and it has always
been my earnest desire, and I must endeavour to die the
death of the righteous, that my last end and future state
may be like his. It would be a poor hope indeed — it
would be a sandy foundation for the dying soul, to have
no hope but such as might be derived from the works of
Bolingbroke and Paine ; and how rich the consolation
and satisfaction afforded by the glorious tidings of the
blessed Scriptures. It is my opinion, there has never one
of these modern deists died as their writings would lead
us to believe ; nor are but few of their writings read at
the present day."

In the year 1814, when the war raged in the Chesa-
peake, he became a sailor under Com. Barney, and was
engaged hi the service at the bombardment of Fort
IM'Henry. Early in the next year, Dr. Luckey, capti-
vated by his genius, and touched by his misfortunes, re-
solved to invite him to his house, in Elizabethtown, and
afford him all the facilities in his power for studying the
profession to which he aspired. It does not appear how
he had rid himself of his apprenticeship; but he seems to

18 MEMOIR OF

have been at liberty to accept the doctor's generous invi-
tation. This he did, with emotions of joy which are
uttered in the following simple and affecting reply, dated
April 4th, 1815.

" I have this hour received your last letter, and I can
assure you, that language is inadequate to express to
you my sincere, unfeigned joy, for the pleasing news you
have communicated to me. Let the manner in which
these lines are penned, convince you of the state of my
mind at present. I was, thirty minutes before I received
your letter, on the point of going to a printer, in this
city, to seek employment, and, but for Providence, I
should have done so. You may suppose that, as soon as
I read your letter, I abandoned this intention and re-
turned to my sister's house,* * with fire in each eye and
paper in each hand,' to answer your epistle of friendship's
own dictating. I must lay this aside for a short time,
till my mind becomes settled and undisturbed. I stopped
at the line above, in order that I might recover a small
degree of composure, in order to express myself as I
ought, to so good a friend. I will certainly comply with
your request, should it please God to continue my health
and strength during the ensuing week. Should it please
the mercy of Providence to suffer me to take up my re-
sidence with you, I shall endeavour, by the most inde-
fatigable study and diligence, to give you the satisfaction

* Mrs. Stella Miller, of Baltimore.

DR. GODMAN. 19

your kindness to me deserves. I am in hopes that I shall
be able to come some day in the course of the next week ;
but, as my journey must be a pedestrian one, I should
not wish to mention a particular day."

" On the 10th of April, four days after the date of this
letter, he arrived," says Dr. L., " at my house, and took
up his residence in my family. He made his promise
good, for in six weeks he had acquired more knowledge
in the different departments of medical science, than
most students do in a year. During this short period he
not only read Chaptal, Fourcroy, Chesselden, Murray,
Brown, Cullen, Rush, Sydenham, Sharp, and Cooper, but
wrote annotations on each, including critical remarks on
the incongruities in their reasonings. He remained with
me five months, and at the end of that time, you would
have imagined from his conversation, that he was an
Edinburgh graduate. When he sat down to study, so
completely was he absorbed by his subject, that it seemed
as though the amputation of one of his limbs would
scarcely withdraw his attention."

A circumstance having no connection with the rela-
tion between him and his benefactor, but involving them
both, led to premature separation. One or both of them
were requested by the political party to which they be-
longed, to deliver orations on the approaching Fourth of
July. Dr. L. began at the appointed hour, and went
through with his discourse, but attempts were made by
the opposite party to offer insult and create disturbance ;

20 MEMOIR OF

at which our young orator became indignant ; and yield-
ing to the impulse of his strong native feelings, not only
refused to deliver what he had prepared, but resolved on
returning forthwith to Baltimore. His oration was left
with his preceptor, who speaks of it as not unworthy of
Patrick Henry.

Departing from Elizabethtown, he returned to Balti-
more, and became a pupil of Dr. Hall ; and, in the suc-
ceeding autumn, began to attend the lectures in that city.
His pecuniary difficulties, however, were pressing, and,
in the ensuing February, 1816, he wrote to his benefac-
tor in the following eloquent and affecting style :

" Need I then inform you how high my expectations
were raised, when I commenced attending the lectures
this winter — need I say I was almost certain of future
competency ? Alas ! my friend, the Great Ruler of
events has interposed (in order to teach me resigna-
tion to his will) this heavy disappointment. By unforeseen
events — by domestic calamities, I have been compelled
to relinquish the study of medicine, so long the ultima-
tum of all my hopes. FATHER OF ALL, THY WILL BE DONE.
I have made this my motto — my consolation; and did I
not daily see the truth of " Omnia pro optimo," I might
perhaps repine. I am now in expectation of a situation
with an eminent apothecary of this city, and I may be
enabled, at a future period, to recommence the study of
medicine."

This situation however he did not obtain.

DR. GODMAN. 21

" Let me now give you a retrospect of ' the days of my
life.' Since I have returned from you, I have discovered
my real age, in an old book of my father's, (and you
would hardly suppose it,) I was 21 years old the 20th
day of December, 1815. Before I was two years old I
was motherless — before I was five years old I was father-
less and friendless — I have been cast among strangers —
J have been deprived of property by fraud, that was mine
by right — I have eaten the bread of misery — I have
drunk of the cup of sorrow — I have passed the flower of
my days in a state little better than slavery, and have
arrived — at what? Manhood, poverty, and desolation.
Heavenly Parent, teach me patience and resignation to
thy will."

About this time he seems to have found a patron in
Professor Davidge, and, on the 18th of April following,
he wrote to Dr. Luckey —

"I still continue to study with Dr. Wright, (the part-
ner of Dr. Davidge,) and provided it shall be the will of
heaven, I may possibly procure admission in the course
of the next year into the venerable circle of medi-
cine."

In speaking of his perplexed and embarrassed situation,
and of the mutations of fortune, he says —

" There is only one thing which points to, and affords
immutable consolation, and that is, the observance of re-
ligion. Although we should be incapable of reaping
enjoyment in this world, even from uninterrupted pros-

22 MEMOIR OF

perity, yet we can ardently long for, and sincerely believe,
we may be eternally happy in the next."

In this situation he finished his medical education. In
the language of Professor Sewall* —

" Here he pursued his studies with such diligence and
zeal, as to furnish, even at that early period, strong inti-
mations of his future eminence. So indefatigable was
he in the acquisition of knowledge, that he left no op-
portunity of advancement unimproved, and notwithstand-
ing the deficiencies of his preparatory education, he
pressed forward with an energy and perseverance, that
enabled him not only to rival, but to surpass all his fel-
lows."

He appears to have attended the lectures in the Balti-
more school, through the sessions commencing in the
autumns of 1816, and 1817. In the course of the last,
Professor Dayidge was disabled, by an accident, for
several weeks, and Mr. Godman was appointed to supply
his place. This, as he had been an apprentice to a trade,
not three years before, in the same city, was an hon-
ourable testimony to his talents and industry, and must
have been highly gratifying to his ambition, According
to Professor Sewall, (loco citato.)

"This situation he filled for several weeks with so
much propriety — he lectured with such enthusiasm and
eloquence, his illustrations were so clear and happy, as

* Eulogy on Dr. Godman, p. 4.

DR. GODMAN. 23

to gain universal applause; and at the time he was ex-
amined for his degree, the superiority of his mind, as
well as the extent and accuracy of his knowledge, were
so apparent, that he was marked by the professors of the
University as one who was destined at some future period
to confer high honour upon the profession."

In reference to his graduation, on the 10th of February,
1818, he wrote to his friend, Dr. Luckey, in these em-
phatical words :

" I know not what to tell you for news, unless I tell
you that I passed my graduate examination, on Saturday ;
Feb. 7,) which lasted twenty minutes; and, of course, 1
have now the ' vast unbounded prospect all before me ;'
though ' shadows, clouds, and darkness rest upon it.' I
will go to the country to practise, most probably to
Frederick county."

In the United States, it is common to see young men,
without preparatory education or fortune, become prac-
titioners of medicine ; but most of this class struggle into
the ranks of the profession, totally unprepared ; and de-
part from it for other pursuits, or for the grave, unknown
and unhonoured by the scientific world. Such an ad-
mission, must not be confounded with that of young
Godman ; who scorned to enter the profession unqualified
and unauthorised by those who guard, or ought to guard,
its portals. In this respect he was a shining example;
and his subsequent success should animate every friend-
less young man, who may engage in the study of medi-

24 MEMOIR OF

cine, to imitate his industry and unfaltering perseverance.
By these means, if not blessed with his genius, they may
prepare themselves for extensive usefulness, and earn
respectability if not renown.

We come now to contemplate Dr. Godman, as a mem-
ber of the profession. His first location was in the vil-
lage of New Holland, on the banks of the Susquehanna ;
where, however, he remained but a few months. The
next was on the Patapsco, near Baltimore, whence, in
July, 1819, he wrote to Dr. Luckey as follows :

" My success in business has been considerable, or my
practice, at least, has been as extensive as I could ration-
ally expect." "What my success may be in the end is
at present very doubtful. I still have considerable ex-
pectation of being recalled to Baltimore, in order to fill
the place which I held in the University. If it so hap-
pen, I shall be much delighted, as a country life is very
little, or not at all, to my taste."

In these rural situations . he devoted himself to the
study of nature; and, at a subsequent time, set forth the
fruits of his observations in a series of papers, entitled
the Rambles of a Naturalist. But his ardent tempera-
ment was little adapted to the stagnant existence of a
village doctor. He thirsted for competition, and longed
to engage in the rivalries which prevail among the can-
didates for fame. Nature seems to have urged him on. It
was she who revealed to him the compass of his intel-
lectual powers; and bid him seek a theatre commen-

DR. GODMAX. 25

surate with their efficiency. A different arrangement
from what he had anticipated was made in the Baltimore
school ; he returned, however, to that city, but at length
boldly resolved to fix himself in Philadelphia, and become
a public teacher of anatomy and physiology.

But an unexpected event gave, for the time being, a
different direction to his efforts. The writer of this
article was enquiring, at that time, for a suitable person
to fill the chair of surgery in the medical college of Ohio,
the first session of which had just closed ; and Dr. God-
man was recommended. His qualifications for the first
place, were expressed by Professor Gibson, then of the
University of Pennsylvania, but previously a member of
the Baltimore institution, in the following unequivocal
and prophetic language. " In my opinion, Dr. Godman
would do honour to any school in America." He was
forthwith appointed ; and arrived in Cincinnati the en-
suing October, (1821,) in time to enter on the second
session of the school.

For the practical details of such a professorship, he
could not of course be well prepared, as his surgical ex-
perience was exceedingly limited; but he was learned
in the institutes of the science, and his knowledge of
anatomy was comprehensive, accurate and commanding.
As a dissector, he was equally rapid and adroit. His
lectures were well received by the class, who admired
his genius, were captivated by his eloquence, and
charmed with the naivett of his manners.
3

26 MEMOIR OP

In the course of the session, difficulties, of which he
was neither the cause nor the victim, were generated in
the faculty, the class was small, and the prospects of the
institution overcast: under these circumstances, Dr.
Godman resigned, but did not at that time return to the
east.

Not long before, the author of this narrative had issued
proposals for a medical journal, to be edited by the pro-
fessors of the college, and obtained a number of sub-
scribers ; but the distracted state of the institution pre-
vented the fulfilment of the design. To this enterprise, as
soon as he had resigned, Dr. Godman directed his at-
tention ; and assisted by Mr. Foote, a liberal and literary
bookseller in this city, in a few weeks issued the first
number of the Western Quarterly Reporter. Thus, if
not the first to project, Dr. G. had the honour of being
the first to commence, a journal of medicine, in the
Valley of the Mississippi. At the end of the 6th number,
of a hundred pages each, the work was discontinued, for,
previously to that time, its editor had returned to Phila-
delphia. More than three hundred pages of this periodi-
cal were from his own pen ; chiefly in translations and
reviews of anatomy, physiology, and medical jurispru-
dence.

Dr. Godman resided in our city for one year only ; but
in that short period he deeply inscribed himself on the
public mind. The memory of his works still remains
with us. In addition to writing for his medical journal,

DR. GOD3IAN. 27

and to his practice, which was considerable for a stranger,
he erected an apparatus for sulphurous fumigation, and
translated and published a French pamphlet on that
remedy ; he read medical books, and many current works
of general literature ; prosecuted the study of the German
and Spanish languages ; and labelled the ancient coins
and medals of the Western Museum. In the midst of
the whole, he found time to cultivate his social relations ;
and every day added a new friend to the catalogue of
those, who loved him for his simplicity and frankness,
not less than they admired him for his genius, vivacity,
and diligence. Thus, to use an idiomatic expression,
he was a growing man, and might have remained with
us and done well. But the hand of destiny was upon
him. He had left the banks of the Patapsco, to be a
public teacher : the same object had drawn him from
Philadelphia to Cincinnati ; and that object, at length, re-
stored him to the great emporium of the medical sciences.
Contrary to the wishes and importunities of his western
friends, in the autumn of 1822, with his young family, he
set off for the theatre of his future glory; which he
reached in safety, though not without some of the
many difficulties, at that time connected with a journey
across the state of Ohio ; of which, in a letter from
Wheeling to one of his friends in this city, he gave a
familiar account, in all respects so characteristic, that
we hope to be excused for extracting it :

" We arrived last night, after a journey which exceeded

28 MEMOIR OF

in miseries any twenty journeys I ever made in my life.
Thank God, the whole has been productive of nothing-
worse, than some hoarseness to my wife, and a galloping
consumption of my bank notes. We were thirteen days
on the way, twelve of which gave us as heavy rains as
ever poor mortals could venture to travel in ; and this
produced such a delightfully soft state of the roads, that
but for the rocks, (which fortunately were not twenty
feet below the surface,) we might have been extracted
some thousand years hence, in a high state of preserva-
tion, to decorate Best's museum, having one of Dor-
feuille's mummy labels around our necks.

" If I were one of the ' tristful travellers,' I might draw
much ' matter of melancholy' from these ' misadven-
tures,' as my friend Sancho Panza calls them. But as
the blessed sun of heaven has driven forth once more in
his beamy chariot, and the clouds are scattered from
their long- held seats, those which have loured on my
mind, have also fled ; and with ' a light heart,' I am once
more preparing to encounter all the good or ill that God
may send."

Of Dr. Godman's life and labours from this time for-
ward, we shall say but little, as they are known to all
the reading people of the United States, both in and out
of the profession ; and as our chief object is to present
the difficulties and triumphs of his earlier years, for the
benefit of our younger readers.

In Philadelphia he immediately began to lecture on

DR. GODMAX. 29

anatomy and physiology, his first and greatest objects ;
and succeeded so well, that, in 1826, he was called to
Rutgers' College, in the city of New York, as an asso-
ciate of Mott and Hosack.

In 1824 he was made one of the editors, (a working
editor,) of the Philadelphia Journal of the Medical
Sciences : and continued a liberal contributor to that
respectable periodical, to the last weeks of his life.

At different times he published a number of interesting
and eloquent introductory lectures.

He was the writer of several elaborate analytical and
critical reviews, in the American Quarterly.

At the present time, actual discoveries in anatomy are
no more to be expected, yet Dr. G., with admirable skill,
revealed many new connections and relations of certain
parts, and described them in a volume which he entitled
Anatomical Investigations.

He translated and published from the Latin, French,
and German languages, a variety of papers and distinct
treatises ; several of them on subjects not professional, as
for example, Lavasseur's Narrative of La Fayette's Visit
to the United States.

He wrote critical and emendatory notes on several im-
portant English and continental works, which the book-
sellers of this country were about to publish.

The article of Natural History, in the Encyclopedia
Americana, was exclusively confided to him, and his
labours upon it ended only with his life.
3*

30 MEMOIR OF

He studied the Zoology of North America, both existing
and fossil, and favoured us with an interesting and ex-
tended history of all its own quadrupeds, embracing a
great variety of new observations.

Such were the labours of the deceased, during the
seven years that he resided in Philadelphia and New
York. For the whole of that period, his life was one of
unmitigated toil. As far back as November, 1823, he
writes to his friend Dr. Best,

" Whatever you may think of my long continued
silence, it has been unavoidably produced by the inces-
sant and laborious employments which have occupied the
whole of my time."

In 1824, he writes to another friend —
" My time has been very much occupied in the various
duties which devolve on me here, and I am obliged to
neglect my friends, in appearance, because it is out of my
power to bestow the necessary attention to correspond-
ence."

Again, in 1825, he says to the same —
" It is needless to tell you, that I am excessively occu-
pied, and shall be more so as the winter approaches."

In the next year we find him still in the same condi-
tion—

" If you expect news at my hands," says he to Dr.
Best, " you expect in vain. My life is one monotonous
round of incessant toil after bread and/ame, that ' certain
portion of uncertain paper.' Of my success in the bread

DR. GODMAX. 31

making way, I can, thank God, speak more satisfactorily
than when we last met, though still nothing to boast of."

Again in the same year he writes —

" You recollect how much and how hard I had to
work, when you were here — that was nothing to what I
have to do now, as vigilance and labour are incessantly
demanded, not only to gain more ' reputation,' but to re-
tain that which I have already with vast toil acquired."

In the following year, after he had removed to New
York, and was there a candidate for professional business,
he writes to the same friend —

" The prospects of our college are fair enough at pre-
sent, but what will be the event, cannot be told until the
time of trial arrives. For my own part, I am not a little
sick of the life such a business occasions, and think you
far better off, in a situation, where you can acquire a
subsistence and respect, without the incessant worry and
vexation attendant on a life of professional ambition.
For my own part, I shall lay myself as much out for the
profession us I can, though I fear, not the best subject
for improvement in that way. My situation is such, that
I am obliged to rely, in a very great degree, on my pen,
and that, you will pay, produces habits very little com-
patible with the introduction of one's self into practice,
where there are so many professed bowers, scrapers, and
flatterers."

In the ensuing winter he was seized with the disease
of the lungs of which he finally died, and was compelled

32 MEMOIR OF

to suspend his lectures. In the following January, 1829,
he speaks to the same gentleman, of his situation and
labours, in these affecting words —

" My excessive exertion, and the exposure to a dread-
ful climate destroyed me. My lungs became diseased,
and last winter, I was threatened with so rapid a decline
as to force me to escape from the climate of New York,
by going to the West Indies. The months of February,
March, and April, my wife and I spent in the Danish
Island of Santa Cruz, where I very nearly perished from
my disease, though I certainly should have done so in
New York. On my return to Philadelphia, in May, I
took a house in Germantown, within seven miles from
the city, where I have since resided. During the warm
weather I was able to creep about, but since the first of
the fall have been confined to a single room. My health
during all this time has been in a very wretched state,
and my consumption very obvious indeed, for I wasted to
bones and lost all my strength. Until the last three
weeks past, I was exceedingly low, unable to sit up, eat,
or perform any function advantageously. Since the time
mentioned I have greatly recovered in all respects. My
cough is by no means troublesome, and I eat and sleep
well. What is best of all is that I have never had hectic
since leaving New York, where I was not properly pre-
scribed for. Notwithstanding all thess drawbacks, I
have had my family to support, and have done so merely
by my pen. This you may suppose severe enough for

DR. GODMAN. 33

one in my condition, nevertheless necessity is a ruthless
master. At present, that I am comparatively well, my
literary occupations form my chief pleasure, and all the
regret I experience is, that my strength is so inadequate
to my wishes. Should my health remain as it is now I
shall do very well, and I cannot but hope, since we have
recently passed through a tremendous spell of cold wea-
ther without my receiving any injury. All my prospects
as a public teacher of anatomy are utterly destroyed, as I
can never hope, nor would I venture if I could, again to
resume my labours. My success promised to be very
great, but it has pleased God that I should move in a dif-
ferent direction."

In the following year, continuing to write for the sup-
port of his family till the last month of his existence, he
was taken from them, and in him they lost their all.
Twelve years of unfaltering industry, that had carried
his name into all the countries where science is culti-
vated, had not enabled him to accumulate property ; and
ended by consigning him to the grave, ere he reached
the noon-day of life, or had put forth, to their full extent,
the vast intellectual powers, with which he was endowed.
In all this, there is much more to grieve than astonish
us. As a physician and surgeon, Dr. Godman's busi-
ness was never considerable. At the very beginning of
his professional career, his mind took a different direc-
tion. No human heart was ever imbued with a deeper
thirst for knowledge, or warmed with a nobler love of

34 MEMOIR OF

glory. He made the former subservient to the latter ; but
the objects of his ambition were teaching and writing,
not the practice of his profession. Perhaps, indeed, he
adapted the aims of his ambition to his taste. He relished
reading, writing, and lecturing, more than the practice
of medicine; and sought to derive from them, that emo-
lument, which, in this country, they seldom afford, and
which can much more certainly be drawn from a close
attention to the practical duties of the profession. Had
he possessed a patrimony, this course would have been
unexceptionable ; without such a reliance, no young phy-
sician should neglect the means of acquiring professional
business, at the outset of his career.

Dr. Godman was, without doubt, a man of genius ; but
he was not, perhaps, so much the expositor, as the histo-
rian of nature. Observing, imaginative, fluent, and gra-
phical, he abounded less in deep and original analysis
than vivid and accurate delineations. Thus his mind,
like that of Lucretius, Darwin, and Good, was poetical
and philosophical ; and he left behind him several fugitive
pieces, written chiefly in his last illness, which prove that
he might have shone as the poet of nature, not less than
her historian, had circumstances awakened his powers.

He possessed uncommon abilities for dissection, and
was accustomed, in the presence of his class, to disen-
tangle the structures intended for exhibition ; thus show-
ing their connections and dependences, while he de-
scribed them with that clearness, animation, and elo-

DE. GODMAN. 35

quence, which only can render the study of anatomy at-
tractive.

In every situation, and on every subject, his attention
was active and acute, his perceptions rapid, his memory
exceedingly retentive, and his ratiocination profound and
analytical.

For languages, he had both taste and talents; and,
succeeded in acquiring a practical knowledge of a greater
number, perhaps, than any American physician who had
preceded him.

The qualities of his heart harmonised with those of
his head. They did honour to the profession, and in-
spired confidence wherever he went To pure moral
habits, and incorruptible honesty, he added that unsus-
pecting frankness, and all those fine and glowing sensi-
bilities, which at once excite our respect, and win our
affection.

But it is not our design to attempt an extended delinea-
tion of his character, and we shall close an article already
prolonged far beyond our original intention, with his own
statement of his opinions and hopes, in regard to that
world of which he is now a " bright inhabitant."

In his last letter to Dr. Best, who followed him in a
few months, he writes : —

" It gives me great happiness to learn that you have
been taught, as well as myself, to fly to the Rock of
Ages for shelter against the afflictions of this life, and
for hopes of eternal salvation. But for the hopes afforded

36 MEMOIR OF DR. GODMAN.

me, by an humble reliance on the all-sufficient atonement
of our blessed Redeemer, I should have been the most
wretched of men. But I trust, that the afflictions I have
endured have been sanctified to my awakening, and to
the regeneration of my heart and life. May we, my dear
friend, persist to cling to the only sure support against
all that is evil in life, and all that is fearful in death."

Thus fell from the firmament of the American profes-
sion, before he had reached his meridian splendour, one
of the brightest stars which have yet risen above its hori-
zon ; but he was one only, and we may hope that his
own example will contribute to place some other in the
constellation.

RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

NO. I.

From early youth" devoted to the study of nature, it
has always been my habit to embrace every opportunity
of increasing my knowledge and pleasures by actual ob-
servation, and I have found ample means of gratifying
this disposition, wherever my place has been allotted by
Providence. When an inhabitant of the country, it was
sufficient to go a few steps from the door to be in the
midst of numerous interesting objects ; when a resident
of the crowded city, a healthful walk of half an hour
placed me where my favourite enjoyment was offered in
abundance ; and now, when no longer able to seek in
fields and woods and running streams for that knowledge
which cannot readily be elsewhere obtained, the recollec-
tion of my former rambles is productive of a satisfaction,
which past pleasures but seldom bestow. Perhaps a
statement of the manner in which my studies were pur-
4

38 RAMBLES OF

sued, may prove interesting to those who love the works
of nature, and may not be aware how great a field for
original observation is within their reach, or how vast a
variety of instructive objects are easily accessible, even
to the occupants of a bustling metropolis. To me it will
be a source of great delight to spread these resources be-
fore the reader, and enable him so cheaply to participate
in the pleasures I have enjoyed, as well as place him in
the way of enlarging the general stock of knowledge by
communicating the results of his original observations.

One of my favourite walks was through Turner's lane,
near Philadelphia, which is about a quarter of a mile
long, and not much wider than an ordinary street, being
closely fenced in on both sides ; yet my reader may feel
surprised when informed that I found ample employment
for all my leisure, during six weeks, within and about its
precincts. On entering the lane from the Ridge road, I
observed a gentle elevation of the turf beneath the lower
rails of the fence, which appeared to be uninterruptedly
continuous ; and when I had cut through the verdant
roof with my knife, it proved to be a regularly arched
gallery or subterranean road, along which the inhabitants
could securely travel at all hours without fear of discovery.
The sides and bottom of this arched way were smooth
and clean, as if much used ; and the raised superior por-
tion had long been firmly consolidated by the grass roots,
intermixed with tenacious clay. At irregular and fre-
quently distant intervals, a side path diverged into the

A NATURALIST. 39

neighbouring fields, and by its superficial situation, irre-
gularity, and frequent openings, showed that its purpose
was temporary, or had been only opened for the sake of
procuring food. Occasionally I found a little gallery di-
verging from the main route beneath the fence, towards
the road, and finally opening on the grass, as if the in-
mate had come out in the morning to breathe the early
air, or to drink of the crystal dew which daily gemmed
the close cropped verdure. How I longed to detect the
animal which tenanted these galleries, in the performance
of his labours ! Farther on, upon the top of a high bank,
which prevented the pathway from continuing near the
fence, appeared another evidence of the industry of my
yet unknown miner. Half a dozen hillocks of loose, al-
most pulverised earth were thrown up, at irregular dis-
tances, communicating with the main gallery by side
passages. Opening one of these carefully, it appeared to
differ little from the common gallery in size, but it was
very difficult to ascertain where the loose earth came
from, nor have I ever been able to tell, since I never wit-
nessed the formation of these hillocks, and conjectures
are forbidden, where nothing but observation is requisite
to the decision. My farther progress was now inter-
rupted by a delightful brook which sparkled across the
road over a clear sandy bed ; and here my little galleries
turned into the field, coursing along at a moderate dis-
tance from the stream. I crept through the fence into
the meadow on the west side, intending to discover, if pos-

40 RAMBLES OF

sible, the animal whose works had first fixed my attention,
but as I approached the bank of the rivulet something
suddenly retreated towards the grass, seeming to vanish
almost unaccountably from sight. Very carefully ex-
amining the point at which it disappeared, I found the
entrance of another gallery or burrow, but of very dif-
ferent construction from that first observed. This new
one was formed in the grass, near and among whose
roots and lower stems a small but regular covered way
was practised. Endless, however, would have been the
attempt to follow this, as it opened in various directions,
and ran irregularly into the field, and towards the brook,
by a great variety of passages. It evidently belonged to
an animal totally different from the owner of the subter-
ranean passage, as I subsequently discovered, and may
hereafter relate. Tired of my unavailing pursuit, I now
returned to the little brook, and seating myself on a
stone, remained for some time unconsciously gazing on
the fluid which gushed along in unsullied brightness over
its pebbly bed. Opposite to my seat, was an irregular
hole in the bed of the stream, into which, in an idle
mood, I pushed a small pebble with the end of my stick.
What was my surprise, in a few seconds afterwards, to
observe the water in this hole in motion, and the pebble
I -had pushed into it gently approaching the surface.
Such was the fact ; the hole was the dwelling of a stout
little crayfish or fresh water lobster, who did not choose
to be incommoded by the pebble, though doubtless he at-

A NATURALIST. 41

tributed its sudden arrival to the usual accidents of the
stream, and not to ray thoughtless movements. He had
thrust his broad lobster-like claws under the stone, and
then drawn them near to his mouth; thus making a kind
of shelf; and as he reached the edge of the hole, he sud-
denly extended his claws, and rejected the incumbrance
from the lower side, or down stream. Delighted to have
found a living object with whose habits I was unac-
quainted, I should have repeated my experiment, but the
crayfish presently returned with what might be called an
armful of rubbish, and threw it over the side of his cell,
and down the stream as before. Having watched him
for some time while thus engaged, my attention was
caught by the considerable number of similar holes along
the margin and in the bed of the stream. One of these
I explored with a small rod, and found it to be eight or
ten inches deep, and widened below into a considerable
chamber, in which the little lobster found a comfortable
abode. Like all of his tribe, the crayfish makes con-
siderable opposition to being removed from his dwelling,
and bit smartly at the stick with his claws : as my pre-
sent object was only to gain acquaintance with his dwell-
ing, he was speedily permitted to return to it in peace.
Under the end of a stone lying in the bed of the stream,
something was floating in the pure current, which at
first seemed like the tail of a fish, and being desirous to
obtain a better view, I gently raised the stone on its
edge, and was rewarded by a very beautiful sight. The

42 RAMBLES OF

object first observed was the tail of a beautiful salaman-
der, whose sides were of a pale straw colour, flecked
with circlets of the richest crimson. Its long lizard like
body seemed to be semitransparent, and its slender limbs
appeared like mere productions of the skin. Not far dis-
tant, and near where the upper end of the stone had been,
lay crouched, as if asleep, one of the most beautifully
coloured frogs I had ever beheld. Its body was slender
compared with most frogs, and its skin covered with
stripes of bright reddish brown and grayish green, in
such a manner as to recall the beautiful markings of the
tiger's hide ; and since the time alluded to, it has received
the name of Tigrina from Leconte, its first scientific de-
scriber. How long I should have been content to gaze
at these beautiful animals, as they lay basking in the
living water, I know not, had not the intense heat made
me feel the necessity of seeking a shade. It was now
past 12 o'clock, I began to retrace my steps towards the
city ; and without any particular object moved along by
the little galleries examined in the morning. I had ad-
vanced but a short distance, when I found the last place
where I had broken open the gallery was repaired. The
earth was perfectly fresh, and I had lost the chance of
discovering the miner, while watching my new acquaint-
ances in the stream. Hurrying onward, the same circum-
stance uniformly presented ; the injuries were all effici-
ently repaired, and had evidently been very recently
completed. Here was one point gained ; it was ascer-

A NATURALIST. 43

tained that these galleries were still inhabited, and I
hoped soon to become acquainted with the inmates. But
at this time, it appeared fruitless to delay longer, and I
returned home, filled with anticipations of pleasure from
the success of my future researches. These I shall relate
on another occasion, if such narrations as the present be
thought of sufficient interest to justify their presentation
to the reader.

44 RAMBLES OP

NO. JI.

On the day following my first related excursion, I
started early in the morning, and was rewarded by one
sight, which could not otherwise have been obtained,
well worth the sacrifice of an hour or two of sleep.
There may be persons who will smile contemptuously
at the idea of a man's being delighted with such trifles ;
nevertheless, we are not inclined to envy such as dis-
esteem the pure gratification afforded by these simple
and easily accessible pleasures. As I crossed an open
lot on my way to the lane, a succession of gossamer spi-
der webs, lightly suspended from various weeds and
small shrubs, attracted my attention. The dew which
had formed during the night was condensed upon this
delicate lace, in globules of most resplendent brilliance,
whose clear lustre pleased while it dazzled the sight. In
comparison with the immaculate purity of these dew-
drops, which reflected and refracted the morning light
in beautiful rays as the gossamer webs trembled in the
breeze, how poor would appear the most invaluable dia-
monds that were ever obtained from Golconda or Brazil!
How rich would any monarch be that could boast the

A NATURALIST. 45

possession of one such, as here glittered in thousands on
every herb and spray ! They are exhaled in an hour or
two and lost, yet they are almost daily offered to the de-
lighted contemplation of the real lover of nature, who is
ever happy to witness the beneficence of the great Crea-
tor, not less displayed in trivial circumstances, than the
most wonderful of his works.

No particular change was discoverable in the works
of my little miners, except that all the places which had
been a second time broken down were again repaired,
showing that the animal had passed between the times
of my visit; and it may not be uninteresting to observe
how the repair was effected. It appeared, when the ani-
mal arrived at the spot broken open or exposed to the
air, that it changed its direction sufficiently downwards
to raise enough of earth from the lower surface to fill up
the opening; this of course slightly altered the direction
of the gallery at this point, and though the earth thrown
up was quite pulverulent, it was so nicely arched as to
retain its place, and soon became consolidated. Having
broken open a gallery where the turf was very close, and
the soil tenacious, I was pleased to find the direction of
the chamber somewhat changed ; on digging farther with
my clasp knife, I found a very beautiful cell excavated in
very tough clay, deeper than the common level of the
gallery and towards one side. This little lodging-room
would probably have held a small melon, and was nicely
arched all round. It was perfectly clear, and quite

46 RAMBLES OF

smooth, as if much used; to examine it fully, I was
obliged to open it completely. (The next day, it was
replaced by another, made a little farther to one side, ex-
actly of the same kind; it was replaced a second time,
but when broken up a third time, it was left in ruins.)
As twelve o'clock approached, my solicitude to discover
the little miner increased to a considerable degree ; pre-
vious observation led me to believe that about that time
his presence was to be expected. I had trodden down
the gallery for some inches in a convenient place, and
stood close by, in vigilant expectation. My wishes were
speedily gratified ; in a short time the flattened gallery
began at one end to be raised to its former convexity,
and the animal rapidly advanced. With a beating heart,
I thrust the knife blade down by the side of the rising
earth, and quickly turned it over to one side, throwing
my prize fairly into the sunshine. For an instant, he
seemed motionless from surprise, when I caught and im-
prisoned him in my hat. It would be vain for me to at-
tempt a description of my pleasure in having thus suc-
ceeded, small as was my conquest. I was delighted with
the beauty of my captive's fur ; with the admirable adap-
tation of his diggers or broad rose-tinted hands; the
wonderful strength of his forelimbs, and the peculiar
suitableness of his head and neck to the kind of life the
Author of nature had designed him for. It was the shrew-
mole, or scalops canadensis, whose history and peculiari-
ties of structure are minutely related in the 1st volume

A NATURALIST. 47

of Godman's American Natural History. All my re-
searches never enabled me to discover a nest, female or
young one of this species. All I ever caught were males,
though this most probably was a mere accident. The
breeding of the scalops is nearly all that is wanting to
render -our knowledge of it complete.

This little animal has eyes, though they are not dis-
coverable during its living condition, nor are they of any
use to it above ground. In running round a room, (until
it jiad perfectly learned where all the obstacles stood,) it
would uniformly strike hard against them with its snout,
and then turn. It appeared to me as singular that a
creature which fed upon living earth worms with all the
greediness of a pig, would not destroy the larvae or mag-
gots of the flesh fly. A shrew-mole lived for many weeks
in my study, and made use of a gun case, into which he
squeezed himself, as a burrow. Frequently he would
carry the meat he was fed with into his retreat ; and as
it was warm weather, the flies deposited their eggs in
the same place. An offensive odour led me to discover
this circumstance, and I found a number of large larvae
over which the shrew-mole passed without paying them
any attention: nor would he, when hungry, accept of
such food, though nothing could exceed the eager haste
with which he seized and munched earth worms. Often
when engaged in observing him thus employed, have I
thought of the stories told me, when a boy, of the man-
ner in which snakes were destroyed by swine ; his vora-

48 RAMBLES OF

city readily exciting a recollection of one of these animals,
and the poor worms writhing and twining about his jaws
answering for the snakes. It would be tedious were I to
relate all my rambles undertaken with a view to gain a
proper acquaintance with this creature, at all hours of
the day, and late in the evening, before daylight,
&c. &c.

Among other objects which served as an unfailing
source of amusement, when resting from the fatigue of
my walks, was the little inhabitant of the brook, called
the gyrinus natator. These merry swimmers occupied
every little sunny pool in the stream, apparently alto-
gether engaged in sport. A circumstance connected
with these insects, gives them additional interest to a
close observer; they are allied by their structure and
nature to those nauseous vermin, the cimices (or bed-
bugs.) All of which, whether found infesting fruits or
our dormitories, are distinguished by their disgusting
odour. But their distant relatives, called by the boys
the water-witches and apple smellers, the gyrinus natator
above alluded to, has a delightful smell, exactly similar
to that of the richest, mellowest apple. This peculiarly
pleasant smell frequently causes the idler many unavail-
ing efforts to secure some of these creatures, whose ac-
tivity in water renders their pursuit very difficult, though
by no means so much so as that of some of the long
legged water spiders which walk the waters dry shod,
and evade the grasp with surprising ease and celerity.

A NATURALIST. 49

What purposes either of these racers serve in the great
economy of nature, has not yet been ascertained, and
will scarcely be determined until our store of facts is far
more extensive than at present. Other and still more
remarkable inhabitants of the brook, at the same time,
came within my notice, and afforded much gratification
in the observation of their habits.

50 RAMBLES OF

NO. HI.

In moving along the borders of the stream, we may
observe, where the sand or mud is fine and settled, a sort
of mark or cutting, as if an edged instrument had been
drawn along, so as to leave behind it a track or groove.
At one end of this line, by digging a little into the mud
with the hand, you will generally discover a shell of con-
siderable size, which is tenanted by a molluscous animal
of singular construction. On some occasions, when the
mud is washed off from the shell, you will be delighted
to observe the beautifully regular dark lines with which
its greenish smooth surface is marked. Other species
are found in the same situations, which, externally, are
rough and inelegant, but within are ornamented to a
most admirable degree, presenting a smooth surface of
the richest pink, crimson, or purple, to which we have
nothing of equal elegance to compare it. If the mere
shells of these creatures be thus splendid, what shall we
say of their internal structure, which, when examined
by the microscope, offers a succession of wonders ? The
beautiful apparatus for respiration, formed of a network
regularly arranged, of the most exquisitely delicate tex-

A NATURALIST. 5 1

tore ; the foot, or organ by which the shell is moved for-
ward through the mud or water, composed of an expanded
spongy extremity, capable of assuming various figures to
suit particular purposes, and governed by several strong
muscles that move it in different directions ; the ovaries,
filled with myriads, not of eggs, but of perfect shells, or
complete little animals, which, though not larger than
the point of a fine needle, yet when examined by the mi-
croscope, exhibit all the peculiarities of conformation that
belong to the parent; the mouth, embraced by the nervous
ganglion, which may be considered as the animal's brain;
the stomach, surrounded by the various processes of the
liver, and the strongly acting, but transparent heart, all
excite admiration and gratify our curiosity. The puzzling
question often presents itself to the enquirer, why so much
elaborateness of construction, and such exquisite orna-
ment as are common to most of these creatures, should
be bestowed ? Destined to pass their lives in and under
the mud, possessed of no sense that we are acquainted
with, except that of touch, what purpose can ornament
serve in them ? However much of vanity there may be
in asking the question, there is no answer to be offered.
We cannot suppose that the individuals have any power
of admiring each other, and we know that the foot is the
only part they protrude from their shell, and that the in-
side of the shell is covered by the membrane called the
mantle. Similar remarks may be made relative to conch-
ology at large: the most exquisitely beautiful forms,

52 RAMBLES OF

colours and ornaments are lavished upon genera and spe-
cies which exist only at immense depths in the ocean, or
buried in the mud ; nor can-any one form a satisfactory
idea of the object the great Author of nature had in view,
in thus profusely beautifying creatures occupying so low
a place in the scale of creation.

European naturalists have hitherto fallen into the
strangest absurdities concerning the motion of the bi-
valved shells, which five minutes' observation of nature
would have served them to correct. Thus they describe
the upper part of the shell as the lower, and the hind part
as the front, and speak of them as moving along on their
rounded convex surface, like a boat on its keel ; instead
of advancing with the edges or open part of the shell to-
wards the earth. All these mistakes have been corrected,
and the true mode of progression indicated from actual
observation, by our fellow citizen, Isaac Lea, whose re-
cently published communications to the American Philo-
sophical Society, reflect the highest credit upon their
author, who is a naturalist in the best sense of the term.

As I wandered slowly along the borders of the run,
towards a little wood, my attention was caught by a con-
siderable collection of shells lying near an old stump.
Many of these appeared to have been recently emptied
of their contents, and others seemed to have long re-
mained exposed to the weather. On most of them, at the
thinnest part of the edge, a peculiar kind of fracture was
obvious, and this seemed to be the work of an animal.

A NATURALIST. 53

A closer examination of the locality showed the foot-
steps of a quadruped which I readily believed to be the
muskrat, more especially as upon examining the adjacent
banks numerous traces of burrows were discoverable. It
is not a little singular that this animal, unlike all others
of the larger gnawers, as the beaver, &c. appears to in-
crease instead of diminishing with the increase of popu-
lation. Whether it is that the dams and other works
thrown up by men, afford more favourable situations for
their multiplication, or their favourite food is found in
greater abundance, they certainly are quite as numerous
now, if not more so, than when the country was first dis-
covered, and are to be found at this time almost within
the limits of the city. By the construction of their teeth,
as well as all the parts of the body, they are closely allied
to the rat kind ; though in size and some peculiarities of
habit, they more closely approximate the beaver. They
resemble the rat especially, in not being exclusively
herbivorous, as is shown by their feeding on the uniones
or muscles above mentioned. To obtain this food, re-
quires no small exertion of their strength ; and they ac-
complish it by introducing the claws of their fore-paws
between the two edges of the shell, and tearing it open
by main force. Whoever has tried to force open one of
these shells, containing a living animal, may form an
idea of the effort made by the muskrat: — the strength of
a strong man would be requisite to produce the same re-
sult in the same way.

5*

54 RAMBLES OF

The burrows of muskrats are very extensive, and con-
sequently injurious to dykes and dams, meadow banks,
&c. The entrance is always under water, and thence
sloping upwards above the level of the water, so that the
muskrat has to dive in going in and out. These crea-
tures are excellent divers and swimmers, and being noc-
turnal are rarely seen unless by those who watch for
them at night. Sometimes we alarm one near the mouth
of the den, and he darts away across the water, near the
bottom, marking his course by a turbid streak in the
stream : occasionally we are made aware of the passage
of one to some distance down the current in the same
way ; but in both cases the action is so rapidly performed,
that we should scarcely imagine what was the cause, if
not previously informed. Except by burrowing into and
spoiling the banks, they are not productive of much evil,
their food consisting principally of the roots of aquatic
plants, in addition to shellfish. The musky odour, which
gives rise to their common name, is caused by glandular
organs placed near the tail, filled with a viscid and power-
fully musky fluid, whose uses we know but little of,
though it is thought to be intended as a guide by which
these creatures may discover each other. This inference
is strengthened by finding some such contrivance in dif-
ferent races of animals, in various modifications. A
great number carry it in pouches similar to those just
mentioned. Some, as the musk animal, have the pouch
under the belly; the shrew has the glands on the side;

A NATURALIST. 55

the camel on the back of the neck; the crocodile under
the throat, &c. At least no other use has ever been as-
signed for this apparatus ; and in all creatures possess-
ing- it, the arrangement seems to be adapted peculiarly
to the habits of the animals. The crocodile, for instance,
generally approaches the shore in such a manner, as to
apply the neck and throat to the soil, while the hinder
part of the body is under water. The glands under the
throat leave the traces of his presence, therefore, with
ease, as they come in contact with the shore. The glan-
dular apparatus on the back of the neck of the male ca-
mel, seems to have reference to the general elevation of
the olfactory organs of the female ; and the dorsal gland
of the peccary, no doubt has some similar relation to the
peculiarities of the race.

The value of the fur of the muskrat causes many of
them to be destroyed, which is easily enough effected by
means of a trap. This is a simple box, formed of rough
boards nailed together, about three feet long, having an
iron door, made of pointed bars, opening inwards, at both
ends of the box. This trap is placed with the end oppo-
site to the entrance of a burrow observed during the day
time. In the night when the muskrat sallies forth, he
enters the box, instead of passing into the open air, and
is drowned, as the box is quite filled with water. If the
traps be visited and emptied during the night, two may
be caught in each trap, as muskrats from other burrows
may come to visit those where the traps are placed, and

56 RAMBLES OF

thus one be taken going in as well as on coming out.
These animals are frequently very fat, and their flesh
has a very wholesome appearance, and would probably
prove good food. The musky odour, however, prejudices
strongly against its use ; and it is probable that the flesh
is rank, as the muscles it feeds on are nauseous and bit-
ter, and the roots which supply the rest of its food are
generally unpleasant and acrid. Still we should not
hesitate to partake of its flesh in case of necessity, espe-
cially if of a young animal, from which the musk bag
had been removed immediately after it was killed.

In this vicinity, the muskrat does not build himself a
house for the winter, as our fields and dykes are too often
visited. But in other parts of the country where exten-
sive marshes exist, and muskrats are abundant, they
build very snug and substantial houses, quite as service-
able and ingenious as those of the beaver. They do not
dam the water as the beaver, nor cut branches of trees
to serve for the walls of their dwellings. They make it
of mud and rushes, raising a cone two or three feet high,
having the entrance on the south side under water.
About the year 1804, I saw several of them in Worrell's
marsh, near Chestertown, Maryland, which were pointed
out to me by an old black man who made his living prin-
cipally by trapping these animals, for the sake of their
skins. A few years since I visited the marshes, near the
mouth of Magerthy river in Maryland, where I was in-
formed by a resident, that the muskrats still built regu-

A NATURALIST. 57

larly every winter. Perhaps these quadrupeds are as
numerous in the vicinity of Philadelphia as elsewhere,
as I have never examined a stream of fresh water, dyked
meadow, or milldam, hereabout, without seeing traces of
vast numbers. Along all the water courses and meadows
in Jersey, opposite Philadelphia, and in the meadows of
the neck, below the navy yard, there must be large num-
bers of muskrats. Considering the value of the fur, and
the ease and trifling expense at which they might be
caught, we have often felt surprised that more of them
are not taken, especially as we have so many poor men
complaining of wanting something to do. By thinning
the number of muskrats, a positive benefit would be con-
ferred on the farmers and furriers, to say nothing of the
profits to the individual.

58 RAMBLES OF

NO. IV.

My next visit to my old hunting- ground, the lane and
brook, happened on a day in the first hay harvest, when
the verdant sward of the meadows was rapidly sinking
before the keen edged scythes swung by vigorous mowers.
This unexpected circumstance afforded me considerable
pleasure, for it promised me a freer scope to my wander-
ings, and might also enable me to ascertain various par-
ticulars, concerning which my curiosity had long been
awakened. Nor was this promise unattended by fruition
of my wishes. The reader may recollect, that, in my
first walk, a neat burrow in the grass, above ground, was
observed, without my knowing its author. The advance
of the mowers explained this satisfactorily, for in cutting
the long grass, they exposed several nests of field mice,
which, by means of these grass-covered alleys, passed to
the stream in search of food or drink, unseen by their
enemies, the hawks and owls. The numbers of these
little creatures were truly surprising ; their fecundity is
so great, and their food so abundant, that were they not
preyed upon by many other animals, and destroyed in

A NATURALIST. 59

great numbers by man, they would become exceedingly
troublesome. There are various species of them, all bear-
ing a very considerable resemblance to each other, and
having to an incidental observer much of the appearance
of the domestic mouse. Slight attention, however, is re-
quisite to perceive very striking differences, and the dis-
crimination of these will prove a source of considerable
gratification to the enquirer. The nests are very nicely
made, and look much like a bird's nest, being lined with
soft materials, and usually placed in some snug little
hollow, or at the root of a strong tuft of grass. Upon the
grass roots and seeds these nibblers principally feed ; and
where very abundant, the effects of their hunger may be
seen in the brown and withered aspect of the grass they
have injured at the root. But under ordinary circum-
stances, the hawks, owls, domestic cat, weasels, crows,
&c. keep them in such limits, as prevent them from do-
ing essential damage.

I had just observed another and a smaller grassy
covered way, where the mowers had passed along, when
my attention was called towards a wagon at a short dis-
tance, which was receiving its load. Shouts and laughter,
accompanied by a general running and scrambling of the
people, indicated that some rare sport was going forward.
When I approached, I found that the object of chase was
a jumping mouse, whose actions it was truly delightful
to witness. When not closely pressed by its pursuers, it
ran with some rapidity in the usual manner, as if seek-

60 RAMBLES OF

ing concealment. But in a moment it would vault into
the air, and skim along- for ten or twelve feet, looking
more like a bird than a little quadruped. After con-
tinuing this for some time, and nearly exhausting its pur-
suers with running and falling over each other, the
frightened creature was accidentally struck down by one
of the workmen, during one of its beautiful leaps, and
killed. As the hunters saw nothing worthy of attention
in the dead body of the animal, they very willingly re-
signed it to me ; and with great satisfaction I retreated
to a willow shade, to read what nature had written in its
form for my instruction. The general appearance was
mouse-like ; but the length and slenderness of the body,
the shortness of its fore limbs, and the disproportionate
length of its hind limbs, together with the peculiarity of
its tail, all indicated its adaptation to the peculiar kind
of action I had just witnessed. A sight of this little
creature vaulting or bounding through the air, strongly
reminded me of what I had read of the great kanguroo
of New Holland ; and I could not help regarding our
little jumper as in some respects a sort of miniature re-
semblance of that curious animal. It was not evident,
however, that the jumping mouse derived the aid from its
tail, which so powerfully assists the kanguroo. Though
long and sufficiently stout in proportion, it had none of
the robust muscularity which, in the New Holland ani-
mal, impels the lower part of the body immediately up-
ward. In this mouse, the leap is principally, if not en-

A NATUBALIST. 61

tirely effected by a sudden and violent extension of the
long hind limbs, the muscles of which are strong, and
admirably suited to their object. We have heard that
these little animals feed on the roots, &c. of the green
herbage, and that they are every season to be found in
the meadows. It may perhaps puzzle some to imagine
how they subsist through the severities of winter, when
vegetation is at rest, and the earth generally frozen.
Here we find another occasion to admire the all-perfect
designs of the awful Author of nature, who has endowed
a great number of animals with the faculty of retiring
into the earth, and passing whole months in a state of
repose so complete, as to allow all the functions of the
body to be suspended, until the returning warmth of the
spring calls them forth to renewed activity and enjoy-
ment. The jumping mouse, when the chill weather be-
gins to draw nigh, digs down about six or eight inches
into the soil, and there forms a little globular cell, as
much larger than his own body as will allow a sufficient
covering of fine grass to be introduced. This being ob-
tained, he contrives to coil up his body and limbs in the
centre of the soft dry grass, so as to form a complete ball;
and so compact is this, that, when taken out, with the
torpid animal, it may be rolled across a floor without in-
jury. In this snug cell, which is soon filled up and
closed externally, the jumping mouse securely abides
through all the frosts and storms of winter, needing
neither food nor fuel, being utterly quiescent, and appa-

6

62 RAMBLES OF

rently dead, though susceptible at any time of reanima-
tion, by being very gradually stimulated by light and
heat.

The little burrow under examination, when called to
observe the jumping mouse, proved to be made by the
merry musicians of the meadows, the field crickets,
acheta campestris. These lively black crickets are very
numerous, and contribute very largely to that general
song which is so delightful to the ear of the true lover of
nature, as it rises on the air from myriads of happy crea-
tures rejoicing amid the bounties conferred on them by
Providence. It is not a voice that the crickets utter, but
a regular vibration of musical chords, produced by nib-
bing the nervures of the elytra against a sort of network
intended to produce the vibrations. The reader will find
an excellent description of the apparatus in Kirby and
Spence's book, but he may enjoy a much more satisfac-
tory comprehension of the whole, by visiting the field
cricket in his summer residence, see him tuning his viol,
and awakening the echoes with his music. By such an
examination as may be there obtained, he may derive
more knowledge than by frequent perusal of the most
eloquent writings, and perhaps observe circumstances
which the learned authors are utterly ignorant of.

Among the great variety of burrows formed in the
grass, or under the surfuce of the soil, by various ani-
mals and insects, there is one that I have often anxiously
and as yet fruitlessly explored. This burrow is formed

A NATURALIST. 63

by the smallest quadruped- animal known to man, the
minute shrew, which, when full grown, rarely exceeds
the weight of thirty-six grains. I had seen specimens
of this very interesting creature in the museum, and had
been taught, by a more experienced friend, to distinguish
its burrow, which I have often perseveringly traced, with
the hope of finding the living animal, but in vain. On
one occasion, I patiently pursued a burrow nearly round
a large barn, opening it all the way. I followed it under
the barn floor, which was sufficiently high to allow me to
crawl beneath. There I traced it about to a tiresome ex-
tent, and was at length rewarded by discovering where
it terminated, under a foundation stone, perfectly safe
from my attempts. Most probably a whole family of
them were then present, and I had my labour for my
pains. As these little creatures are nocturnal, and are
rarely seen from the nature of the places they frequent,
the most probable mode of taking them alive would be,
by placing a small mousetrap in their way, baited with
a little tainted or slightly spoiled meat. If a common
mouse trap be used, it is necessary to work it over with
additional wire, as this shrew could pass between the
bars even of a close mouse trap. They are sometimes
killed by cats, and thus obtained, as the cat never eats
them, perhaps on account of their rank smell, owing to
a peculiar glandular apparatus on each side, that pours
out a powerfully odorous greasy substance. The species
of the shrew genus are not all so exceedingly diminutive,

64 RAMBLES OF

as some of them are even larger than a common mouse.
They have their teeth coloured at the tips in a remarkable
manner ; it is generally of a pitchy brown, or dark chest-
nut hue, and, like the colouring of the teeth in the beaver
and other animals, is owing to the enamel being thus
formed, and not to any mere accident of diet. The
shrews are most common about stables and cow-houses;
and there, should I ever take the field again, my traps
shall be set, as my desire to have one of these little quad-
rupeds is still as great as ever.

A NATURALIST. 65

NO. V.

Hitherto my rambles have been confined to the neigh-
bourhood of a single spot, with a view of showing how
perfectly accessible to all, are numerous and various in-
teresting natural objects. This habit of observing in the
manner indicated, began many years anterior to my visit
to the spots heretofore mentioned, and have extended
through many parts of our own and another country.
Henceforward my observations shall be presented with-
out reference to particular places, or even of one place
exclusively, but with a view to illustrate whatever may be
the subject of description, by giving all I have observed
of it under various circumstances.

A certain time of my life was spent in that part of
Anne Arundel county, Md. which is washed by the river
Patapsco on the north, the great Chesapeake bay on the
west, and the Severn river on the south. It is in every di-
rection cut up by creeks, or arms of the rivers and bay,
into long, flat strips of land, called necks, the greater part
of which is covered by dense pine forests, or thickets of
small shrubs and saplings, rendered impervious to human
footsteps by the growth of vines, whose inextricable

66 RAMBLES OF

mazes nothing but a fox, wild cat, or weasel, could thread.
The soil cleared for cultivation is very generally poor,
light, and sandy, though readily susceptible of improve-
ment, and yielding a considerable produce in Indian corn,
and most of the early garden vegetables, by the raising
of which for the Baltimore market the inhabitants obtain
all their ready money. The blight of slavery has long
extended its influence over this region, where all its usual
effects are but too obviously visible. The white inhabit-
ants are few in number, widely distant from each other,
and manifest, in. their mismanagement and half indigent
circumstances, how trifling an advantage they derive
from the thraldom of their dozen or more of sturdy
blacks, of different sexes and ages. The number of
marshes formed at the heads of the creeks, render this
country frightfully unhealthy in autumn, at which time
the life of a resident physician is one of incessant toil
and severe privation. Riding from morning till night,
to get round to visit a few patients, his road leads gener-
ally through pine forests, whose aged and lofty trees, en-
circled by a dense undergrowth, impart an air of sombre
and unbroken solitude. Rarely or never does he en-
counter a white person on his way, and only once in a
while will he see a miserably tattered negro, seated on a
sack of corn, carried by a starveling horse or mule, which
seems poorly able to bear the weight to the nearest mill.
The red-head woodpecker, and the flicker or yellow-
hammer, a kindred species, occasionally glance across his

A NATURALIST. 67

path ; sometimes when he turns his horse to drink at the
dark coloured branch, (as such streams are locally called,)
he disturbs a solitary rufous thrush engaged in washing
its plumes ; or as he moves steadily along, he is slightly
startled by a sudden appearance of the towhe bunting
close to the side of the path. Except these creatures, and
these by no means frequently seen, he rarely meets
with animated objects ; at a distance the harsh voice of
the crow is often heard, or flocks of them are observed
in the cleared fields, while now and then the buzzard, or
turkey vulture, may be seen wheeling in graceful circles
in the higher regions of the air, sustained by his broadly
expanded wings, which apparently remain hi a state of
permanent and motionless extension. At other seasons
of the year, the physician must be content to live in the
most positive seclusion ; the white people are ah* busily
employed in going to and from market ; and even were
they at home, they are poorly suited for companionship.
I here spent month after month, and, except the patients
I visited, saw no one but the blacks ; the house in which
1 boarded was kept by a widower, who, with myself, was
the only white man within the distance of a mile or two.
My only compensation was this, the house was pleasantly
situated on the bank of Curtis's creek, a considerable arm
of the Patapsco, which extended for a mile or two beyond
us, and immediately in front of the door expanded so as
to form a beautiful little bay. Of books I possessed very
few, and those exclusively professional ; but in this beau-

68 RAMBLES OF

tiful expanse of sparkling water, I had a book opened
before me, which a life-time would scarcely suffice me to
read through. With the advantage of a small but neatly
made and easily manageable skiff, I was always inde-
pendent of the service of the blacks, which was ever re.
pugnant to my feelings and principles. I could convey
myself in whatever direction objects of enquiry might pre-
sent, and as my little bark was visible for a mile in either
direction from the house, a handkerchief waved, or the
loud shout of a negro, was sufficient to recall me, in case
my services were required.

During the spring months, and while the garden vege.
tables are yet too young to need a great deal of attention,
the proprietors frequently employ their blacks in hauling
the seine ; and this in these creeks is productive of an
ample supply of yellow perch, which affords a very valua-
ble addition to the diet of all. The blacks in an especial
mariner profit by this period of plenty, since they are
permitted to eat of them without restraint, which cannot
be said of any other sort of provision allowed them. Even
the pigs and crows obtain their share of the abundance,
as the fishermen, after picking out the best fish, throw
the smaller ones on the beach. But as the summer months
approach, the aquatic grass begins to grow, and this fish-
ing can no longer be continued, because the grass rolls
the seine up in a wisp, so that it can contain nothing.
At this time the spawning season of the different species
of sun-fish begins, and to me this was a time of much

A NATURALIST. 69

gratification. Along the edge of the river, where the
depth of water was not greater than from four feet to as
shallow as twelve inches, an observer would discover a
succession of circular spots cleared of the surrounding
grass, and showing a clear sandy bed. These spots, or
cleared spaces, we may regard as the nest of this beauti-
ful fish. There, balanced hi the transparent wave, at the
distance of six or eight inches from the bottom, the sun-
fish is suspended in the glittering sunshine, gently sway-
ing its beautiful tail and fins ; or, wheeling around in the
limits of its little circle, appears to be engaged in keep-
ing it clear of all incumbrances. Here the mother de-
posits her eggs or spawn, and never did hen guard her
callow brood with more eager vigilance, than the sun-fish
the little circle within which her promised offspring are
deposited. If another individual approach too closely to
her borders, with a fierce and angry air she darts against
it, and forces it to retreat. Should any small, and not too
heavy object be dropped in the nest, it is examined with
jealous attention, and displaced if the owner be not satis-
fied of its harmlessness. At the approach of man she
flies with great velocity into deep water, as if willing to
conceal that her presence was more than accidental where
first seen. She may, after a few minutes, be seen cau-
tiously venturing to return, which is at length done with
velocity ; then she would take a hurried turn or two
around, and scud back again to the shady bowers formed
by the river grass which grows up from the bottom to

70 RAMBLES OF

within a few feet of the surface, and attains to twelve,
fifteen, or more feet in length. Again she ventures forth
from the depths ; and if no further cause of fear present-
ed, would gently sail into the placid circle of her home,
and with obvious satisfaction explore it in every part.

Besides the absolute pleasure I derived from visiting
the habitations of these glittering tenants of the river,
hanging over them from my little skiff, and watching
their every action, they frequently furnished me with a
very acceptable addition to my frugal table. Situated as
my boarding house was, and all the inmates of the house
busily occupied in raising vegetables to be sent to market,
our bill of fare offered little other change than could be
produced by varying the mode of cookery. It was either
broiled bacon and potatoes, or fried bacon and potatoes,
or cold bacon and potatoes, and so on at least six days
out of seven. But, as soon as I became acquainted with
the habits of the sun-fish, I procured a neat circular iron
hoop for a net ; secured to it a piece of an old seine, and
whenever I desired to dine on. fresh fish, it tvas only ne-
cessary to take my skiff, and push her gently along from
one sun-fish nest to another, myriads of which might be
seen along all the shore. The fish, of course, darted off
as soon as the boat first drew near, and during this absence
the net was placed so as to cover the nest, of the bottom
of which the meshes but slightly intercepted the view.
Finding all things quiet, and not being disturbed by the
net, the fish would resume its central station, the net was

A NATURALIST. 71

suddenly raised, and the captive placed in the boat. In
a quarter of an hour, I could generally take as many in
this way as would serve two men for dinner, and when
an acquaintance accidentally called to see me, during the
season of sun-fish, it was always in my power to lessen
our dependence on the endless ba'con. I could also always
select the finest and largest of these fish, as while stand-
ing up in the boat, one could see a considerable number
at once, and thus choose the best. Such was their abun-
dance, that the next day would find all the nests re-occu-
pied. Another circumstance connected with this matter
gave me no small satisfaction ; the poor blacks, who could
rarely get time for angling, soon learned how to use my
net with dexterity ; and thus, in the ordinary time al-
lowed them for dinner, would borrow it, run down to the
shore, and catch some fish to add to their very moderate
allowance.

72 EAMBLES OF

NO. VI.

After the sun-fish, as regular annual visitants of the
small rivers and creeks containing salt or brackish water,
came the crabs in vast abundance, though for a very dif-
ferent purpose. These singularly constructed and inter-
esting beings furnished me with another excellent subject
for observation; and, during the period of their visitation,
my skiff was in daily requisition. Floating along with an
almost imperceptible motion, a person looking from the
shore might have supposed her entirely adrift ; for as I
was stretched at full length across the seats, in order to
bring my sight as close to the water as possible without
inconvenience, no one would have observed my presence
from a little distance. The crabs belong to a very exten-
sive tribe of beings, which carry their skeletons on the
outside of their bodies, instead of within ; and of neces-
sity the fleshy, muscular, or moving power of the body,
is placed in a situation the reverse of what occurs in ani-
mals of a higher order, which have internal skeletons or
solid frames to their systems. This peculiarity of the
crustaceous animals and various other beings, is attended
with one apparent inconvenience; when they have grown

A NATURALIST. 73

large enough to fill their shell or skeleton completely,
they cannot grow farther, because the skeleton being ex-
ternal, is incapable of enlargement. To obviate this diffi-
culty, the Author of nature has endowed them with the
power of casting off the entire shell, increasing in size,
and forming another equally hard and perfect, for several
seasons successively, until the greatest or maximum size
is attained, when the change or sloughing ceases to be
necessary, though it is not always discontinued on that
account. To undergo this change with greater ease and
security, the crabs seek retired and peaceful waters, such
as the beautiful creek I have been speaking of, whose
clear, sandy shores are rarely disturbed by waves causing
more than a pleasing murmur, and where the number of
enemies must be far less in proportion than in the bois-
terous waters of the Chesapeake, their great place of
concourse. From the first day of their arrival in the lat-
ter part of June, until the time of their departure, which
in this creek occurred towards the first of August, it was
astonishing to witness the vast multitudes which flocked
towards the head of the stream.

It is not until they have been for some time in the
creek, that the moult or sloughing generally commences.
They may bs then observed gradually coming closer in
shore, to where the sand is fine, fairly exposed to the sun,
and a short distance farther out than the lowest water
mark, as they must always have at least a depth of three
or four inches water upon them.
7

74 RAMBLES OP

The individual having selected his place, becomes per-
fectly quiescent, and no change is observed during some
hours but a sort of swelling along the edges of the great
upper shell at its back part. After a time this posterior
edge of the shell becomes fairly disengaged like the lid
of a chest, and now begins the more difficult work of with-
drawing the great claws from their cases, which every one
recollects to be vastly larger at their extremities and be-
tween the joints than the joints themselves. A still
greater apparent difficulty presents in the shedding of the
sort of tendon which is placed within the muscles. Never-
theless, the Author of nature has adapted them to the
accomplishment of all this. The disproportionate sized
claws undergo a peculiar softening, which enables the
crab, by a very steadily continued, scarcely perceptible
effort, to pull them out of their shells, and the business
is completed by the separation of the complex parts about
the mouth and eyes. The crab now slips out from the
slough, settling near it on the sand. It is now covered
by a soft, perfectly flexible skin ; and though possessing
precisely the same form as before, seems incapable of the
slightest exertion. Notwithstanding that such is its con-
dition, while you are gazing on this helpless creature, it
is sinking in the fine loose sand, and in a short time is
covered up sufficiently to escape the observation of care-
less or inexperienced observers. Neither can one say how
this is effected, although it occurs under their immediate
observation; the motions employed to produce the dis-

A NATURALIST. 75

placement of the sand are too slight to be appreciated,
though it is most probably owing to a gradual lateral
motion of the body by which the sand is displaced in the
centre beneath, and thus gradually forced up at the sides
until it falls over and covers the crab. Examine him
within twelve hours, and you will find the skin becoming
about as hard as fine writing paper, producing a similar
crackling if compressed ; twelve hours later the shell is
sufficiently stiffened to require some slight force to bend
it, and the crab is said to be in buckram, as in the first
stage it was in paper. It is still helpless, and offers no
resistance; but at the end of thirty-six hours, it shows
that its natural instincts are In action, and by the time
forty-eight hours have elapsed, the crab is restored to the
exercise of all his functions. I have stated the above as
the periods in which the stages of the moult are accom-
plished, but I have often observed that the rapidity of this
process is very much dependent upon the temperature,
and especially upon sunshine. A cold, cloudy, raw, and
disagreeable spell happening at this period, though by no
means common, will retard the operation considerably,
protracting the period of helplessness. This is the har-
vest season of the white fisherman and of the poor slave.
The laziest of the former are now in full activity, wading
along the shore from morning till night, dragging a small
boat after them, and holding in the other hand a forked
stick with which they raise the crabs from the sand. The
period during which the crabs remain in the paper state

76 RAMBLES OF

is so short, that great activity is required to gather a
sufficient number to take to market, but the price at
which they are sold is sufficient to awaken all the cupidity
of the crabbers. Two dollars a dozen is by no means an
uncommon price for them, when the season first comes
on; they subsequently come down to a dollar, and even
to fifty cents, at any of which rates the trouble of col
lecting them is well paid. The slaves search for them at
night, and then are obliged to kindle a fire of pine-knots
on the bow of the boat, which strongly illuminates the
surrounding water, and enables them to discover the
crabs. Soft crabs are, with great propriety, regarded as
an exquisite treat by those who are fond of such eating ;
and though many persons are unable to use crabs or lob-
sters in any form, there are few who taste of the soft
crabs without being willing to recur to them. As an ar-
ticle of luxury they are scarcely known north of the
Chesapeake, though there is nothing to prevent them from
being used to considerable extent in Philadelphia, espe-
cially since the opening of the Chesapeake and Delaware
canal. The summer of 1829 I had the finest soft crabs
from Baltimore. They arrived at the market in the after-
noon, were fried according to rule, and placed in a tin
butter kettle, then covered for an inch or two with melt-
ed lard, and put on board the steam boat which left Bal-
timore at five o'clock the same afternoon. The next morn-
ing before ten o'clock they were in Philadelphia, and at
one they were served up at dinner in Germantown. The

A NATURALIST. 77

only difficulty in the way is that of having persons to at-
tend to their procuring and transmission, as when cooked
directly after they arrive at market, and forwarded with
as little delay as above mentioned, there is no danger of
their being the least injured.

At other seasons, when the crabs did not come close
to the shore, I derived much amusement by taking them
in the deep water. This is always easily effected by the
aid of proper bait ; a leg of chicken, piece of any raw
meat, or a salted or spoiled herring, tied to a twine string
of sufficient length, and a hand net of convenient size,
is all that is necessary. You throw out your line and
bait, or you fix as many lines to your boat as you please,
and in a short time you see, by the straightening of the
line, that the bait has been seized by a crab, who is try-
ing to make off with it. You then place your net where
it can conveniently be picked up, and commence steadily
but gently to draw hi your line, until you have brought
the crab sufficiently near the surface to distinguish him ;
if you draw him nearer, he will see you and immediately
let go, otherwise his greediness and voracity will make
him cling to his prey to the last. Holding the line in the
left hand, you now dip your net edge foremost into the
water at some distance from the line, carry it down per-
pendicularly until it is five or six niches lower than the
crab, and then with a sudden turn out bring it directly
before him, and lift up at the same time. Your prize is
generally secured, if your net be at all properly placed ;
7*

78 RAMBLES OF

for as soon as he is alarmed, he pushes directly down-
wards, and is received in the bag of the net. It is better
to have a little water in the bottom of the boat to throw
them into, as they are easier emptied out of the net, al-
ways letting go when held over the water. This a good
crabber never forgets, and should he unluckily be seized
by a large crab, he holds him over the water and is freed
at once, though he loses his game. When not held over
the water, they bite sometimes with dreadful obstinacy,
and I have seen it necessary to crush the forceps or
claws before one could be induced to let go the fingers of
a boy. A poor black fellow also placed himself in an
awkward situation ; the crab seized him by a finger of
his right hand, but he was unwilling to lose his captive
by holding him over the water, instead of which he at-
tempted to secure the other claw with his left hand, while
he tried to crush the biting claw between his teeth. In
doing this, he somehow relaxed his left hand, and with
the other claw, the crab seized poor Jem by his under
lip, which was by no means a thin one, and forced him
to roar with pain. With some difficulty he was freed
from his tormentor* but it was several days before he
ceased to excite laughter, as the severe bite was followed
by a swelling of the lip, which imparted a most ludicrous
expression to a naturally comical countenance.

A NATUBALIST. 79

NO. VII.

On the first arrival of the crabs, when they throng the
shoals of the creeks in vast crowds, as heretofore men-
tioned, a very summary way of taking them is resorted
to by the country people, and for a purpose that few would
suspect without having witnessed it. They use a three
pronged fork or gig made for this sport, attached to a
long handle ; the crabber standing up in the skiff, pushes
it along until he is over a large collection of crabs, and
then strikes his spear among them. By this several are
transfixed at once and lifted into the boat, and the opera-
tion is repeated until enough have been taken. The pur-
pose to which they are to be applied is to feed the hogs,
which very soon learn to collect in waiting upon the
beach when the crab spearing is going on. Although
these bristly gentry appear to devour almost all sorts of
food with great relish, it seemed to me that they regard-
ed the crabs as a most luxurious banquet ; and it was
truly amusing to see the grunters, when the crabs were
. thrown on shore for them, and were scampering off in
various directions, seizing them in spite of their threat-
ening claws, holding them down with one foot, and

80 RAMBLES OF

speedily reducing them to a state of helplessness by break-
ing off their forceps. Such a crunching and cracking of
the unfortunate crabs I never have witnessed since ; and
I might have commiserated them more, had not I known
that death in some form or other was continually await-
ing them, and that their devourers were all destined to
meet their fate in a few months in the sty, and thence
through the smoke house to be placed upon our table.
On the shores of the Chesapeake I have caught crabs in
a way commonly employed by all those who are unpro-
vided with boats and nets. This is to have a forked stick
and a baited line, with which the crabber wades out as
far as he .thinks fit, and then throws out his line. As
soon as he finds he has a bite, he draws the line in, cau-
tiously lifting but a very little from the bottom. As soon
as it is near enough to be fairly in reach, he quickly, yet
with as little movement as possible, secures the crab by
placing the forked stick across his body and pressing him
against the sand. He must then stoop down and take
hold of the crab by the two posterior swimming legs, so
as to avoid being seized by the claws. Should he not
wish to carry each crab ashore as he catches it, he pin-
ions or spansels (as the fishermen call it) them. This is
a very effectual mode of disabling them from using their
biting claws, yet it is certainly not the most humane
operation ; it is done by taking the first of the sharp-
pointed feet of each side, and forcing it in for the length
of the joint behind the moveable joint or thumb of the

A NATURALIST. 81

opposite biting claw. The crabs are then strung upon a
string or wythe, and allowed to hang in the water until
the crabber desists from his occupations. In the previous
article crabs were spoken of as curious and interesting,
and the reader may not consider the particulars thus far
given as being particularly so. Perhaps, when he takes
them altogether, he will agree that they have as much
that is curious about their construction as almost any
animal we have mentioned, and in the interesting details
we have as yet made but a single step.

The circumstance of the external skeleton has been
mentioned, but who would expect an animal, as low in
the scale as a crab, to be furnished with ten or twelve
pair of jaws to its mouth ? Yet such is the fact, and all
these variously constructed pieces are provided with ap-
propriate muscles, and move in a manner which can
scarcely be. explained, though it may be very readily
comprehended when once observed in living nature. But,
after all the complexity of the jaws, where would an in-
experienced person look for their teeth? surely not in the
stomach ? Nevertheless, such is their situation ; and these
are not mere appendages, that are called teeth by courte-
sy, but stout regular grinding teeth, with a light brown
surface. They are not only within the stomach, but fixed
to a cartilage nearest to its lower extremity, so that the
food, unlike that of other creatures, is submitted to the
action of the teeth as it is passing /rom the stomach; in-
stead of being chewed before it is swallowed. In some

82 RAMBLES OF

species the teeth are five in number ; but throughout this
class of animals the same general principle of construc-
tion may be observed. Crabs and their kindred have no
brain, because they are not required to reason upon what
they observe ; they have a nervous system excellently
suited to their mode of life, and its knots or ganglia send
out nerves to the organs of sense, digestion, motion, &c.
The senses of these beings are very acute, especially their
sight, hearing and smell. Most of my readers have heard
of crabs' eyes, or have seen these organs in the animal
on the end of two little projecting knobs, above and on
each side of the mouth ; few of them, however, have seen
the crab's ear, yet it is very easily found, and is a little
triangular bump placed near the base of the feelers. This
bump has a membrane stretched over it, and communi-
cates with a small cavity, which is the internal ear. The
organ of smell is not so easily demonstrated as that of
hearing, though the evidence of their possessing the sense
to an acute degree is readily attainable. A German na-
turalist inferred, from the fact of the nerve corresponding
to the olfactory nerve in man being distributed to the an-
tenna?, in insects, that the antennae were the organs of
smell in them. Cuvier and others suggest that a similar
arrangement may exist in the Crustacea. To satisfy my-
self whether it was so or not, I lately dissected a small
lobster, and was delighted to find that the first pair of
nerves actually went to the antennee, and gave positive
support to the opinion mentioned. I state this, not to

A NATURALIST. 83

claim credit for ascertaining the truth or inaccuracies of
a suggestion, but with a view of inviting the reader to do
the same in all cases of doubt. Where it is possible to
refer to nature for the actual condition of facts, learned
authorities give me no uneasiness. If I find that the
structure bears out their opinions, it is more satisfactory ;
when it convicts them of absurdity, it saves much fruit,
less reading, as well as the trouble of shaking off preju-
dices.

The first time my attention was called to the extreme
acuteness of sight possessed by these animals, was during
a walk along the flats of Long Island, reaching to-
wards Governor's Island in New York. A vast number
of the small land crabs, called fiddlers by the boys (gecar-
cinus,) occupy burrows or caves dug in the marshy soil,
whence they come out and go for some distance, either
in search of food or to sun themselves. Long before I
approached close enough to see their forms with distinct-
ness, they were scampering towards their holes, into
which they plunged with a tolerable certainty of escape;
these retreats being of considerable depth, and often com-
municating with each other, as well as nearly filled with
water. On endeavouring cautiously to approach some
others, it was quite amusing to observe their vigilance ;
to see them slowly change position, and from lying ex-
tended in the sun, beginning to gather themselves up for
a start should it prove necessary ; at length standing up
as it were on tiptoe, and raising their pedunculated eyes

84 RAMBLES OF

as high as possible. One quick step on the part of the
individual approaching- was enough — away they would
go, with a celerity which must appear surprising to any
one who had not previously witnessed it. What is more
remarkable, they possess the power of moving equally
well with any part of the body foremost, so that when
endeavouring to escape, they will suddenly dart off to
one side or the other, without turning round, and thus
elude pursuit. My observations upon the crustaceous
animals have extended through many years, and in very
various situations ; and for the sake of making the gene-
ral view of their qualities more satisfactory, I will go on
to state what I remarked of some of the genera and spe-
cies in the West Indies, where they are exceedingly nu-
merous and various. The greater proportion of the genera
feed on animal matter, especially after decomposition has
begun ; a large number are exclusively confined to the
deep waters, and approach the shoals and lands only during
the spawning season. Many live in the sea, but daily
pass many hours upon the rocky shores for the pleasure
of basking in the sun; others live in marshy or moist
ground, at a considerable distance from the water, and
feed principally on vegetable food, especially the sugar
cane, of which they are extremely destructive. Others
again reside habitually on the hills or mountains, and
visit the sea only once a year for the purpose of depositing
their eggs in the sand. All those which reside in bur-
rows made in moist ground, and those coming daily on

A NATURALIST. 85

the rocks to bask in the sun, participate in about an equal
degree in the qualities of vigilance and swiftness. Many
a breathless race have I run in vain, attempting to inter-
cept them, and prevent their escaping into the sea. Many
an hour of cautious and solicitous endeavour to steal upon
them unobserved, has been frustrated by their long sight-
ed watchfulness ; and several times, when, by extreme
care and cunning approaches, I have actually succeeded
in getting between a fine specimen and the sea, and had
full hope of driving him farther inland, have all my an-
ticipations been ruined by the wonderful swiftness of
their flight, or the surprising facility with which they
would dart off in the very opposite direction, at the very
moment I felt almost sure of my prize. One day, in par-
ticular, I saw on a flat rock, which afforded a fine sunning
place, the most beautiful crab I had ever beheld. It was
of the largest size, and would have covered a large din-
ner plate, most beautifully coloured with bright crimson
below, and a variety of tints of blue, purple, and green
above; it was just such a specimen as could not fail to
excite all the solicitude of a collector to obtain. But, it
was not in the least deficient in the art of self-preserva-
tion ; my most careful manoeuvres proved ineffectual, and
all my efforts only enabled me to see enough of it to
augment my regrets to a high degree. Subsequently I
saw a similar individual in the collection of a resident ;
this had been killed against the rocks during a violent
hurricane, with very slight injury to its shell. I offered
8

86 RAMBLES OF

high rewards to the black people if they would bring me
such a one, but the most expert among them seemed to
think it an unpromising search, as they knew of no way
of capturing them. If I had been supplied with some
powder of nux vomica with which to poison some meat,
I might have succeeded.

A XATURALISJ 87

NO. VIII.

The fleet running crab (cypoda pugilator,) mentioned
as living in burrows dug in a moist soil, and preying
chiefly on the sugar cane, is justly regarded as one of the
most noxious pests that can infest a plantation. Their
burrows extend to a great depth, and run in various di-
rections ; they are also, like those of our fiddlers, nearly
full of muddy water, so that, when these marauders once
plump into their dens, they may be considered as entirely
beyond pursuit. Their numbers are so great, and they
multiply in such numbers, as in some seasons to destroy
a large proportion of a sugar crop, and sometimes their
ravages, combined with those of the rats and other plun-
derers, are absolutely ruinous to the sea-side planters. I
was shown, by the superintendent of a place thus infest-
ed, a great quantity of cane utterly killed by these crea-
tures, which cut it off hi a peculiar manner, in order to
suck the juice ; and he assured me that, during that sea-
son, the crop would be two thirds less than its average,
solely owing to the inroads of the crabs, and rats, which
if possible are still more numerous. It was to me an ir-

RAMBLES OF

resistible source of amusement to observe the air of spite
and vexation with which he spoke of the crabs ; the rats
he could shoot, poison, or drive off for a time with dogs.
But the crabs would not eat his poison, while sugar cane
was growing ; the dogs could only chase them into their
holes ; and if, in helpless irritation, he sometimes fired
his gun at a cluster of them, the shot only rattled over
their shells like hail against a window. It is truly desira-
ble that some summary mode of lessening their number
could be devised, and it is probable that this will be best
effected by poison, as it may be possible to obtain a bait
sufficiently attractive to ensnare them. Species of this
genus are found in various parts of our country, more
especially towards the south. About Cape May, our
friends may have excellent opportunities of testing the
truth of what is said of their swiftness and vigilance.

The land crab, which is common to many of the West
India islands, is more generally known as the Jamaica
crab, because it has been most frequently described from
observation in that island. Wherever found, they all have
the habit of living, during great part of the year, in
the highlands, where they pass the day time, concealed
in huts, cavities, and under stones, and come out at night
for their food. They are remarkable for collecting in
vast bodies, and marching annually to the sea side, in
order to deposit their eggs in the sand ; and this accom-
plished, they return to their former abodes, if undisturbed.
They commence their march in the night, and move in

A NATURALIST. 89

the most direct line towards the destined point. So ob-
stinately do they pursue this route, that they will not turn
out of it for any obstacle that can possibly be surmounted.
During the day time they skulk and He hid as closely as
possible, but thousands upon thousands of them are taken
for the use of the table by whites and blacks, as on their
seaward march they are very fat and of fine flavour. On
the homeward journey, those that have escaped capture
are weak, exhausted, and unfit for use. Before dismiss-
ing the crabs, I must mention one which was a source of
much annoyance to me at first, and of considerable interest
afterwards, from the observation of its habits. At that
time I resided in a house delightfully situated about two
hundred yards from the sea, fronting the setting sun,
having in clear weather the lofty mountains of Porto
Rico, distant about eighty miles, in view. Like most of
the houses in the island, ours had seen better days, as
was evident from various breaks in the floors, angles
rotted off the doors, sunken sills, and other indications of
decay. Our sleeping room, which was on the lower floor,
was especially in this condition ; but as the weather was
delightfully warm, a few cracks and openings, though
rather large, did not threaten much inconvenience. Our
bed was provided with that indispensable accompaniment,
a musquito bar or curtain, to which we were indebted for
escape from various annoyances. Scarcely had we ex-
tinguished the light, and composed ourselres to rest, than
we heard, in various parts of the room, the most startling
8*

90 RAMBLES OF

noises. It appeared as if numerous hard and heavy bo-
dies were trailed along the floor ; then they sounded as
if climbing- up by the chairs and other furniture, and fre-
quently something like a large stone would tumble down
from such elevations with a loud noise, followed by a pe-
culiar chirping note. What an effect this produced upon
entirely inexperienced strangers, may well be imagined
by those who have been suddenly waked up in the dark,
by some unaccountable noise in the room. Finally, these
invaders began to ascend the bed; but happily the mus-
quito bar was securely tucked under the bed all around,
and they were denied access, though their efforts and
tumbles to the floor produced no very comfortable reflec-
tions. Towards daylight they began to retire, and in
the morning no trace of any such visitants could be per-
ceived. On mentioning our troubles, we were told that
this nocturnal disturber was only Bernard the Hermit,
called generally the soldier crab, perhaps from the pecu-
liar habit he has of protecting his body by thrusting it
into an empty shell, which he afterwards carries about,
until he outgrows it, when it is relinquished for a larger.
Not choosing to pass another night quite so noisily, due
care was taken to exclude Monsieur Bernard, whose
knockings were thenceforward confined to the outside of
the house. I baited a large wire rat trap with some corn
meal, and placed it outside of the back door, and in the
morning, found it literally half filled with these crabs,
from the largest sized shell that could enter the trap,

A NATURALIST. 91

down to such as were not larger than a hickory nut.
Here was a fine collection made at once, affording a very
considerable variety in the size and age of the specimens,
and the different shells into which they had introduced
themselves.

The soldier, or hermit crab, when withdrawn from his
adopted shell, presents about the head and claws a con-
siderable family resemblance to the lobster. The claws,
however, are very short and broad, and the body covered
with hard shell only in that part which is liable to be
exposed or protruded. The posterior or abdominal part
of the body, is covered only by a tough skin, and tapers
towards a small extremity, furnished with a sort of hook-
like apparatus, enabling it to hold on to its factitious
dwelling. Along the surface of its abdomen, as well as
on the back, there are small projections, apparently in-
tended for the same purpose. When once fairly in pos-
session of a shell, it would be quite a difficult matter to
pull the crab out, though a very little heat applied to the
shell will quickly induce him to leave it. The shells they
select are taken solely with reference to their suitable-
ness, and hence you may catch a considerable number of
the same species, each of which is in a different species
or genus of shell. The shells commonly used by them,
when of larger size, are those of the whilk, which are
much used as an article of food by the islanders, or the
smaller conch [strombus] shells. The very young her-
mit crabs are seen in almost every variety of small shell

92 RAMBLES OF

found on the shores of the Antilles. I have frequently been
amused by seeing ladies, eagerly engaged in making a col-
lection of these beautiful little shells, and not dreaming
of their being tenanted by a living animal, suddenly
startled, on displaying their acquisitions, at observing
them to be actively endeavouring to escape ; or on intro-
ducing the hand into the reticule to produce a particular
fine specimen, to receive a smart pinch from the claws of
the little hermit. The instant the shell is closely ap.
proached or touched, they withdraw as deeply into the
shell as possible, and the small ones readily escape obser-
vation, but they soon become impatient of captivity, and
try to make off. The species of this genus (pagurus) are
very numerous, and during the first part of their lives
are all aquatic. That is, they are hatched in the little
pools about the margin of the sea, and remain there until
those that are destined to live on land are stout enough
to commence their travels. The hermit crabs which are
altogether aquatic are by no means so careful to choose
the lightest and thinnest shells, as the land troops. The
aquatic soldiers may be seen towing along shells of most
disproportionate size ; but their relatives, who travel over
the hills by moonlight, know that all unnecessary incum-
brance of weight should be avoided. They are as pug-
nacious and spiteful as any of the crustaceous class ; and
when taken, or when they fall and jar themselves, con-
siderably, utter a chirping noise, which is evidently an
angry expression. They are ever ready to bite with their

A NATURALIST. 93

claws, and the pinch of the larger individuals is quite
painful. It is said, that when they are changing their
shells, for the sake of obtaining more commodious cover-
ings, they frequently fight for possession, which may be
true where two that have forsaken their old shells meet,
or happen to make choice of the same vacant one. It is
also said, that one crab is sometimes forced to give up
the shell he is in, should a stronger chance to desire it.
This, as I never saw it, I must continue to doubt; for I
cannot imagine how the stronger could possibly accom-
plish his purpose, seeing that the occupant has nothing
to do but keep close quarters. The invader would have
no chance of seizing him to pull him out, nor could he
do him any injury by biting upon the surface of his hard
claws, the only part that would be exposed. If it be true
that one can dispossess the other, it must be by some
contrivance of which we are still ignorant. These sol-
dier crabs feed on a great variety of substances, scarcely
refusing any thing that is edible ; like the family they
belong to, they have a decided partiality for putrid meats,
and the planters accuse them also of too great a fondness
for the sugar cane. Their excursions are altogether noc-
turnal, in the day time they He concealed very effectually
in small holes, among stones, or any kind of rubbish, and
are rarely taken notice of, even where hundreds are within
a short distance of each other. The larger soldier crabs
are sometimes eaten by the blacks, but they are not much
sought after even by them, as they are generally regard-

94 RAMBLES OF

ed with aversion and prejudice. There is no reason, that
we are aware of, why they should not be as good as
many other crabs, but they certainly are not equally es-
teemed.

A NATURALIST. 95

NO. IX.

Those who have only lived in forest countries, where
vast tracts are shaded by a dense growth of oak, ash,
chestnut, hickory and other trees of deciduous foliage,
which present the most pleasing varieties of verdure and
freshness, can have but little idea of the effect produced
on the feelings by aged forests of pine, composed in great
degree of a single species, whose towering summits are
crowned with one dark green canopy, which successive
seasons find unchanged, and nothing but death causes
to vary. Their robust and gigantic trunks rise an hun-
dred or more feet high in purely proportioned columns,
before the limbs begin to diverge; and their tops, densely
clothed with long bristling foliage, intermingle so closely
as to allow of but slight entrance to the sun. Hence the
undergrowth of such forests is comparatively slight and
thin, since none but shrubs and plants that love the shade,
can flourish under this perpetual exclusion of the animat-
ing and invigorating rays of the great exciter of the
vegetable world. Through such forests, and by the
merest foot paths in great part, it was my lot to pass
many miles almost every day ; and had I not endeavoured

96 RAMBLES OF

to derive some amusement and instruction from the study
of the forest itself, my time would have been as fatiguing
to me, as it was certainly quiet and solemn. But wher-
ever nature is, and under whatever form she may present
herself, enough is always proffered to fix attention and
produce pleasure, if we will condescend to observe with
carefulness. I soon found that even a pine forest was far
from being devoid of interest, and shall endeavour to
prove this by stating the result of various observations
made during the time I lived in this situation.

The common pitch, or as it is generally called Norway
pine, grows from a seed, which is matured in vast abun-
dance in the large cones peculiar to the pines. This seed
is of a rather triangular shape, thick and heavy at the
part by which it grows from the cone, and terminating
in a broad membranous fan or sail, which, when the seeds
are shaken out by the wind, enables them to sail obliquely
through the air to great distances. Should an old corn-
field or other piece of ground be thrown out of cultivation
for more than one season, it is sown with the pine seeds
by the winds, and the young pines shoot up as closely
and compactly as hemp. They continue to grow in this
manner until they become twelve or fifteen feet high,
until their roots begin to encroach on each other, or until
the stoutest and best rooted begin to overtop so as entirely
to shade the smaller. These gradually begin to fail, and
finally dry up and perish, and a similar process is con-
tinued until the best trees acquire room enough to grow

A NATURALIST. 97

without impediment. Even when the young pines have
attained to thirty or forty feet in height, and are as thick
as a man's thigh, they stand so closely together, that their
lower branches, which are all dry and dead, are inter-
mingled, sufficiently to prevent any one from passing
between the trees without first breaking these obstruc-
tions away. I have seen such a wood as that just men-
tioned, covering an old corn-field, whose ridges were still
distinctly to be traced, and which an old resident informed
me he had seen growing in corn. In a part of this wood
which was not far from my dwelling, I had a delightful
retreat, that served me as a private study or closet, though
enjoying all the advantages of the open air. A road
that had once passed through the field, and was of course
more compacted than any other part, had denied access
to the pine seeds for a certain distance, while on each
side of it they grew with their usual density. The ground
was covered with the soft layer or carpet of dried pine
leaves which gradually and imperceptibly fall through-
out the year, making a most pleasant surface to tread on,
and rendering the step perfectly noiseless. By beating
off with a stick all the dried branches that projected
towards the vacant space, I formed a sort of chamber,
fifteen or twenty feet long, which above was canopied by
the densely mingled branches of the adjacent trees, which
altogether excluded or scattered the rays of the sun, and
on all sides was so shut in by the trunks of the young
9

98 RAMBLES OF

trees, as to prevent all observation. Hither during the
hot season, I was accustomed to retire, for the purpose of
reading or meditation ; and within this deeeper solitude,
where all was solitary, very many of the subsequent
movements of my life were suggested or devised.

From all I could observe, and all the enquiries I could
get answered, it appeared that this rapidly growing tree
does not attain its full growth until it is eighty or ninety
years old, nor does its time of full health and vigour much
exceed an hundred. Before this time it is liable to the
attacks of insects, but these are of a kind that bore the
tender spring shoots to deposit their eggs therein, and
their larvae appear to live principally on the sap which is
very abundant, so that the tree is but slightly injured.
But after the pine has attained its acme, it is attacked
by an insect which deposits its egg in the body of the
tree, and the larva devours its way through the solid
substance of the timber; so that after a pine has been for
one or two seasons subjected to these depredators, it will
be fairly riddled, and if cut down is unfit for any other
purpose than burning. Indeed, if delayed too long, it is
poorly fit for firewood, so thoroughly do these insects
destroy its substance. At the same time that one set of
insects is engaged in destroying the body, myriads of
others are at work under the bark, destroying the sap
vessels, and the foliage wears a more and more pale and
sickly appearance as the tree declines in vigour. If not
cut down, it eventually dies, becomes leafless, stripped of

A NATURALIST. 99

its bark, and as the decay advances, all the smaller
branches are broken off; and it stands with its naked
trunk and a few ragged limbs, as if bidding defiance to
the tempest which howls around its head. Under favour-
able circumstances, a large trunk will stand in this con-
dition for nearly a century, so extensive and powerful
are its roots, so firm and stubborn the original knitting
of its giant frame. At length some storm, more furious
than all its predecessors, wrenches those ponderous roots
from the soil, and hurls the helpless carcass to the earth,
crushing all before it in its fall. Without the aid of fire,
or some peculiarity of situation favourable to rapid de-
composition, full another hundred years will be requisite
to reduce it to its elements, and obliterate the traces of
its existence. Indeed, long after the lapse of more than
that period, we find the heart of the pitch pine still pre-
serving its original form, and from being thoroughly im-
bued with turpentine, become utterly indestructible ex-
cept by fire.

If fiie proprietor attend to the warnings afforded by
the woodpecker, he may always cut his pines in time to
prevent them from being injured by insects. The wood-
peckers run up and around the trunks, tapping from time
to time with their powerful bills. The bird knows at once
by the sound whether there be insects below or not. If
the tree is sound, the woodpecker soon forsakes it for
another ; should he begin to break into the bark, it is to
catch the worm, and such trees are at once to be marked

100 RAMBLES OF

for the axe. In felling such pines, I found the woodmen
alway anxious to avoid letting- them strike against neigh-
bouring sound trees, as they said that the insects more
readily attacked an injured tree than one whose bark was
unbroken. The observation is most probably correct, at
least the experience of country folks in such matters is
rarely wrong, though they sometimes give very odd rea-
sons for the processes they adopt.

A full grown pine forest is at all times a grand and
majestic object to one accustomed to moving through it.
Those vast and towering columns, sustaining a waving
crown of deepest verdure; those robust and rugged limbs
standing forth at a vast height overhead, loaded with the
cones of various seasons ; and the diminutiveness of all
surrounding objects compared with these gigantic child-
ren of nature, cannot but inspire ideas of seriousness and
even of melancholy. But how awful and even tremen-
dous does such a situation become, when we hear the
first wailings of the gathering storm, as it stoops upon
the lofly summits of the pine, and soon increases to a
deep hoarse roaring, as the boughs begin to wave in the
blast, and the whole tree is forced to sway before its
power.

In a short time the fury of the wind is at its
height, the loftiest trees bend suddenly before it, and
scarce regain their upright position ere they are again
obliged to cower beneath its violence. Then the tempest
literally howls, and amid the tremendous reverberations

A NATURALIST. 101

of thunder, and the blazing glare of the lightning, the
unfortunate wanderer hears around him the^crash of nu-
merous trees hurled down by the storm, and knows not
but the next may be precipitated upon him. More than
once have I witnessed all the grandeur, dread, and deso-
lation of such a scene, and have always found safety
either by seeking as quickly as possible a spot where
there were none but young trees, or if on the main road
choosing the most open and exposed situation out of the
reach of the large trees. There, seated on my horse,
who seemed to understand the propriety of such patience,
I would quietly remain, however thoroughly drenched,
until the fury of the wind was completely over. To
say nothing of the danger from falling trees, the peril
of being struck by the lightning, which so frequently
shivers the loftiest of them, is so great as to render any
attempt to advance at such time highly imprudent.

Like the ox among animals, the pine tree may be
looked upon as one of the most universally useful of the
sons of the forest. For all sorts of building, for firewood,
tar, turpentine, rosin, lampblack, and a vast variety of
other useful products, this tree is invaluable to man.
Nor is it a pleasing contemplation, to one who knows it<
usefulness, to observe to how vast an amount it is annu-
ally destroyed in this country, beyond the proportion that
nature can possibly supply. However, we are not dis-
posed to believe that this evil will ever be productive of

102 RAMBLES OF

very great injury, especially as coal fuel is becoming
annually more extensively used. Nevertheless, were I
the owner of a pine forest, I should exercise a consider-
able degree of care in the selection of the wood for the

A NATURALIST. 103

NO. X.

Among the enemies with which the farmers of a poor
or light soil have to contend, I know of none so truly
formidable and injurious as the crows, whose numbers,
cunning, and audacity, can scarcely be appreciated, ex-
cept by those who have had long continued and numer-
ous opportunities of observation. Possessed of the most
acute senses, and endowed by nature with a considerable
share of reasoning power, these birds bid defiance to al-
most all the contrivances resorted to for their destruc-
tion; and when their numbers have accumulated to vast
multitudes, which annually occurs, it is scarcely possible
to estimate the destruction they are capable of effecting.
Placed in a situation where every object was subjected
to close observation, as a source of amusement, it is not
surprising that my attention should be drawn to so con-
spicuous an object as the crow ; and having once com-
menced remarking the peculiarities of this bird, I con-
tinued to bestow attention upon it during many years,
in whatever situation it was met with. The thickly
wooded and well watered parts of the state of Maryland,
as affording them a great abundance of food, and almost

10£ RAMBLES OF

entire security during their breeding season, are espe-
cially infested by these troublesome creatures, so that at
some times of the year they are collected in numbers
which would appear incredible to any one unaccustomed
to witness their accumulations.

Individually, the common crow (corvus corona} may
be compared in character with the brown or Norway rat,
being, like that quadruped, addicted to all sorts of mis-
chief, destroying the lives of any small creatures that
may fall in its way, plundering with audacity wherever
any thing is exposed to its rapaciousness, and triumphing
by its cunning over the usual artifices employed for the
destruction of ordinary noxious animals. Where food is
at any time scarce, or the opportunity for such marauding
inviting, there is scarcely a young animal about the farm
yards safe from the attacks of the crow. Young chickens,
ducks, goslings, and even little pigs, when quite young
and feeble, are carried off by them. They are not less
eager to discover the nests of domestic fowls, and will sit
very quietly in sight, at a convenient distance, until the
hen leaves the nest, and then fly down and suck her
eggs at leisure. But none of their tricks excited in me
a greater interest, than the observation of their attempts
to rob a hen of her chicks. The crow, alighting at a little
distance from the hen, would advance in an apparently
careless way towards the brood, when the vigilant parent
would bristle up her feathers, and rush at the black rogue
to drive him off. After several such approaches, the hen

A NATUBALIST. 105

would become very angry, and would chase the crow to
a greater distance from the brood. This is the very ob-
ject the robber has in view, for as long as the parent
keeps near her young, the crow has very slight chance
of success ; but as soon as he can induce her to follow him
to a little distance from the brood, he takes advantage of
his wings, and before she can regain her place, has flown
over her, and seized one of her chickens. When the cock
is present, there is still less danger from such an attack,
for chanticleer shows all his vigilance and gallantry in
protecting his tender offspring, though it frequently hap-
pens that the number of hens with broods renders it im-
possible for him to extend his care to all. When the
crow tries to carry off a gosling from the mother, it re-
quires more daring and skill, and is far less frequently
successful than in the former instance. If the gander be
in company, which he almost uniformly is, the crow has
his labour in vain. Notwithstanding the advantages of
flight and superior cunning, the honest vigilance and de-
termined bravery of the former are too much for him.
His attempts to approach, however cautiously conducted,
are promptly met, and all his tricks rendered unavailing,
'by the fierce movements of the gander, whose powerful
blows the crow seems to be well aware might effectually
disable him. The first time I witnessed such a scene, I
was at the side of the creek, and saw on the opposite
shore a goose with her goslings beset by a crow ; from
the apparent alarm of the mother and brood, it seemed to

106 E AMBLES OF

me they must be in great danger, and I called to the
owner of the place, who happened to be in sight, to in-
form him of their situation. Instead of going to their
relief, he shouted back to me, to ask if the gander was
not there too; and as soon as he was answered in the af-
firmative, he bid me be under no uneasiness, as the crow
would find his match. Nothing could exceed the cool
impudence and pertinacity of the crow, who, perfectly
regardless of my shouting, continued to worry the poor
gander for an hour, by his efforts to obtain a nice gos-
ling for his next meal. At length convinced of the fruit-
lessnessof his efforts, he flew off to seek some more easily
procurable food. Several crows sometimes unite to plun-
der the goose of her young, and are then generally suc-
cessful, because they are able to distract the attention of
the parents, and lure them farther from their young.

In the summer the crows disperse in pairs for the pur-
pose of raising their young, and then they select lofty
trees in the remotest parts of the forest, upon which with
dry sticks and twigs they build a large strong nest, and
line it with softer materials. They lay four or five eggs,
and when they are hatched, feed, attend, and watch over
their young with the most zealous devotion. Should any
one by chance pass near the nest while the eggs are still
unhatched, or the brood are very young, the parents keep
close, and neither by the slightest movement nor noise
betray their presence. But if*the young are fledged, and
beginning to take their first lessons in flying, the ap-

A NATURALIST. 107

proach of a man, especially if armed with a gun, calls
forth all their cunning and solicitude. The young are
immediately placed in the securest place at hand, where
the foliage is thickest, and remain perfectly motionless
and quiet. Not so the alarmed parents, both of which
fly nearer and nearer to the hunter, uttering the most
discordant screams, with an occasional peculiar note,
which seems intended to direct or warn their young. So
close do they approach, and so clamorous are they as the
hunter endeavours to get a good view of them on the tree,
that he is almost uniformly persuaded the young crows
are also concealed there; but he does not perceive, as he
is cautiously trying to get within gun shot, that they are
moving from tree to tree, and at each remove are farther
and farther from the place where the young are hid
After continuing this trick, until it is impossible that the
hunter can retain any idea of the situation of the young
ones, the parents cease their distressing outcries, fly
quietly to the most convenient lofty tree, and calmly
watch the movements of their disturber. Now and then
they utter a loud quick cry, which seems intended to bid
their offspring lie close and keep quiet, and it is very
generally the case that they escape all danger by their
obedience. An experienced crow-killer watches eagerly
for the tree where the crows first start from ; and if this
can be observed, he pays no attention to their clamours,
nor pretence of throwing themselves in his way, as he is
satisfied they are too vigilant to let him get a shot at

108 RAMBLES OF

them ; and if he can see the young, he is tolerably sure
of them all, because of their inability to fly or change
place readily.

The time of the year in which the farmers suffer most
from them is in the spring, before their enormous congre-
gations disperse, and when they are rendered voracious
by the scantiness of their winter fare. Woe betide the
corn field which is not closely watched, when the young
grain begins to shoot above the soil! If not well guarded,
a host of these marauders will settle upon it at the first
light of the dawn, and before the sun has risen far above
the horizon, will have plundered every shoot of the germi-
nating seed, by first drawing it skilfully from the moist
earth by the young stalk, and then swallowing the grain.
The negligent or careless planter, who does not visit his
field before breakfast, finds, on his arrival, that he must
either replant his corn, or relinquish hopes of a crop;
and without the exertion of due vigilance, he may be
obliged to repeat this process twice or thrice the same
season. Where the crows go to rob a field in this way,
they place one or more sentinels, according to circum-
stances, in convenient places, and these are exceedingly
vigilant, uttering a single warning call, which puts the
whole to flight the instant there is the least appearance
of danger or interruption. Having fixed their sentinels,
they begin regularly at one part of the field, and pursu-
ing the rows along, pulling up each shoot in succession,
and biting off the corn at the root. The green shoots

A NATURALIST. 109

thus left along the rows, as if they had been arranged
with care, offer a melancholy memorial of the work
which has been effected by these cunning and destruc-
tive plunderers.

Numerous experiments have been made, where the
crows are thus injurious, to avert their ravages ; and the
method I shall now relate I have seen tried with the
most gratifying success. In a large tub a portion of tar
and grease were mixed, so as to render the tar sufficiently
thin and soft, and to this was added a portion of slacked
lime in powder, and the whole stirred until thoroughly
incorporated. The seed corn was then thrown in, and
stirred with the mixture until each grain received a uni-
form coating. The corn was then dropped in the hills,
and covered as usual. This treatment was found to re-
tard the germination about three days, as the mixture
greatly excludes moisture from the grain. But the crows
did no injury to the field ; they pulled up a small quantity
in different parts of the planting, to satisfy themselves it
was all alike ; upon becoming convinced of which, they
quietly left it for some less carefully managed grounds,
where pains had not been taken to make all the corn so
nauseous and bitter.

10

110 RAMBLES OF

NO. XL

It rarely happens that any of the works of nature are
wholly productive of evil, and even the crows, trouble-
some as they are, contribute in a small degree to the
good of the district they frequent. Thus, though they
destroy eggs and young poultry, plunder the cornfields,
and carry off whatever may serve for food, they also rid
the surface of the earth of a considerable quantity of
carrion, and a vast multitude of insects and their destruc-
tive larvsB. The crows are very usefully employed when
they alight upon newly ploughed fields, and pick up
great numbers of those large and long-lived worms,
which are so destructive to the roots of all growing vege-
tables ; and they are scarcely less so, when they follow
the seine haulers along the shores, and pick up the small
fishes, which would otherwise be left to putrify and load
the air with unpleasant vapours. Nevertheless, they be-
come far more numerous in some parts of the country
than is at all necessary to the good of the inhabitants,
and whoever would devise a method of lessening their
numbers suddenly, would certainly be doing a service to
the community.

A NATURALIST. 1 1 1

About a quarter of a mile above the house I lived in
on Curtis's creek, the shore was a sand bank or bluff,
twenty or thirty feet high, crowned with a dense young
pine forest to its very edge. Almost directly opposite,
the shore was flat, and formed a point extending in the
form of a broad sand bar, for a considerable distance
into the water, and when the tide was low, this flat af-
forded a fine level space, to which nothing could approach
in either direction, without being easily seen. At a
short distance from the water, a young swamp wood of
maple, gum, oaks, &c. extended back, towards some
higher ground. As the sun descended, and threw his
last rays in one broad sheet of golden effulgence over
the crystal mirror of the waters, innumerable compa-
nies of crows arrived daily, and settled on this point, for
the purpose of drinking, picking up gravel, and uniting
in one body prior to retiring for the night to their accus-
tomed dormitory. The trees adjacent and ah" the shore
would be literally blackened by those plumed marauders,
while their increasing outcries, chattering and screams,
were almost deafening. It certainly seems that they
derive great pleasure from their social habits, and I of-
ten amused myself by thinking the uninterrupted clatter
which was kept up, as the different gangs united with
the main body, was produced by the recital of the adven-
tures they had encountered during their last marauding
excursions. As the sun became entirely sunk below the
horizon, the grand flock crossed to the sand bluff on the

112 RAMBLES OF

opposite side, where they generally spent a few moments
in picking up a further supply of gravel, and then, rising
in dense and ample column, they sought their habitual
roost in the deep entanglements of the distant pines.
This daily visit to the point, so near to my dwelling, and
so accessible by means of the skiff, led me to hope that
I should have considerable success in destroying them.
Full of such anticipations, I loaded two guns, and pro-
ceeded in my boat to the expected place of action, pre-
vious to the arrival of the crows. My view was to have
my boat somewhere about half way between the two
two shores, and as they never manifested much fear of
boats, to take my chance of firing upon the main body
as they were flying over my head to the opposite side of
the river. Shortly after I had gained my station, the
companies began to arrive, and every thing went on as
usual. But whether they suspected some mischief from
seeing a boat so long stationary in their vicinity, or could
see and distinguish the guns in the boat, I am unable to
say ; the fact was, however, that when they set out to
fly over, they passed at an elevation which secured them
from my artillery effectually, although, on ordinary oc-
casions, they were in the habit of flying over me at a
height of not more than twenty or thirty feet. I return-
ed home without having had a shot, but resolved to try
if I could not succeed better the next day. The same
result followed the experiment, and when I fired at one
gang, which it appeared possible to attain, the instant

A KATURALIST. 113

the gun was discharged, the crows made a sort of halt,
descended considerably, flying in circles, and screaming
most vociferously, as if in contempt or derision. Had I
been prepared for this, a few of them might have suffer-
ed for their bravado. But my second gun was in the
bow of the boat, and before I could get it, the black
gentry had risen to their former security. While we
were sitting at tea that evening, a black came to inform
me that a considerable flock of crows, which had arrived
too late to join the great flock, had pitched in the young
pines not a great way from the house, and at a short
distance from the road-side. We quickly had the guns
in readiness, and I scarcely could restrain my impa-
tience until it should be late enough and dark enough to
give us a chance of success. Without thinking of any
thing but the great number of the crows, and their in-
ability to fly to advantage in the night, my notions of
the numbers we should bring home were extravagant
enough, and I only regretted that we might be obliged
to leave some behind. At length, led by the black boy,
we sallied forth, and soon arrived in the vicinity of this
temporary and unusual roost ; and now the true charac-
ter of the enterprise began to appear. We were to leave
the road, and penetrate several hundred yards among
the pines, whose proximity to each other, and the diffi-
culty of moving between which, on account of the dead
branches, has been heretofore stated. Next, we had to
be careful not to alarm the crows before we were ready
10*

114 RAMBLES OF

to act, and at the same time were to advance with cocked
guns in our hands. The only way of moving forwards
at all, I found to be that of turning my shoulders as
much as possible to the dead branches, and breaking my
way as gently as I could. At last we reached the trees
upon which the crows were roosting ; but as the foliage
of the young pines was extremely dense, and the birds
were full forty feet above the ground, it was out of the
question to distinguish where the greatest number were
situated. Selecting the trees which appeared by the
greater darkness of their summits to be most heavily
laden with our game, my companion and I pulled our
triggers at the same moment. The report was followed
by considerable outcries from the crows, by a heavy
shower of pine twigs and leaves upon which the shot
had taken effect, and a deafening roar caused by the sud-
den rising on the wing of the alarmed sleepers. One
crow at length fell near me, which was wounded too
badly to fly or retain his perch, and as the flock had
gone entirely off, with this one crow did I return, rather
crestfallen from my grand nocturnal expedition. This
crow, however, afforded me instructive employment and
amusement during the next day, in the dissection of its
nerves and organs of sense, and I know not that I ever
derived more pleasure from any anatomical examination,
than I did from the dissection of its internal ear. The
extent and convolutions of its semicircular canals, show
how highly the sense of hearing is perfected in these

A NATURALIST. 115

creatures, and those who wish to be convinced of the
truth of what we have stated in relation to them, may
still see this identical crow skull, in the Baltimore Mu-
seum, to which I presented it after finishing the dissec-
tion. At least, I saw it there a year or two since,
though I little thought, when employed in examining, or
even when I last saw it, that it would ever be the subject
of such a reference " in a printed book."

Not easily disheartened by preceding failures, I next
resolved to try to outwit the crows, and for this purpose
prepared a long line, to which a very considerable num-
ber of lateral lines were tied, having each a very small
fishing hook at the end. Each of these hooks was bait-
ed with a single grain of corn, so cunningly put on,
that it seemed impossible that the grain could be taken
up without the hook being swallowed with it. About
four o'clock, in order to be in full time, I rowed up to
the sandy point, made fast my main line to a bush, and
extending it toward the water, pegged it down at the
other end securely in the sand. I next arranged all my
baited lines, and then covering them all nicely with
sand, left nothing exposed but the bait. This done, I
scattered a quantity of corn all around, to render the
baits as little liable to suspicion as possible. After taking
a final view of the arrangement, which seemed a very
hopeful one, I pulled my boat gently homeward, to wait
the event of my solicitude for the capture of the crows.
As usual, they arrived in thousands, blackened the sand

116 RAMBLES OF

beach, chattered, screamed, and fluttered about in great
glee, and finally sailed over the creek and away to their
roost, without having left a solitary unfortunate to pay
for having meddled with my baited hooks. I jumped
into the skiff, and soon paid a visit to my unsuccessful
snare. The corn was all gone ; the very hooks were all
bare, and it was evident that some other expedient must be
adopted before I could hope to succeed. Had I caught
but one or two alive, it was my intention to have em-
ployed them to procure the destruction of others, in a
manner I shall hereafter describe.

A NATURALIST. 1 1 7

NO. XII.

Had I succeeded in obtaining some living crows, they
were to be employed in the following manner. After
having made a sort of concealment of brushwood within
good gunshot distance, the crows were to be fastened by
their wings on their backs, between two pegs, yet not
so closely as to prevent them from fluttering or strug-
gling. The other crows, who are always very inquisi-
tive where their species is in any trouble, were expected
to settle down near the captives, and the latter would
certainly seize the first that came near enough with
their claws, and hold on pertinaciously. This would
have produced fighting and screaming in abundance, and
the whole flock might gradually be so drawn into the
fray, as to allow many opportunities of discharging the
guns upon them with full effect. This I have often ob-
served, that when a quarrel or fight took place in a
large flock or gang of crows, a circumstance by no
means infrequent, it seemed soon to extend to the whole,
and, during the continuance of their anger, all the usual
caution of their nature appeared to be forgotten, allowing
themselves at such times to be approached closely and re-

1 1 8 RAMBLES OF

gardless of men, fire-arms, or the fall of their compa-
nions, continuing their wrangling with rancorous obsti-
nacy. A similar disposition may be produced among
them by catching a large owl, and tying it with a cord
of moderate length to the limb of a naked tree in a
neighbourhood frequented by the crows. The owl is one
of the few enemies which the crow has much reason to
dread, as it robs the nests of their young, whenever they
are left for the shortest time. Hence, whenever crows
discover an owl in the day time, like many other birds,
they commence an attack upon it, screaming most voci-
ferously, and bringing together all of their species with-
in hearing. Once this clamour has fairly begun, and their
passions are fully aroused, there is little danger of their
being scared away, and the chance of destroying them
by shooting is continued as long as the owl remains un-
injured. But one such opportunity presented during my
residence where crows were abundant, and this was un-
fortunately spoiled by the eagerness of one of the gun-
ners, who, in his anxiety to demolish one of the crows,
fixed upon some that were most busy with the owl, and
killed it instead of its disturbers, which at once ended
the sport. When the crows leave the roost, at early
dawn, they generally fly to a naked or leafless tree in
the nearest field, and there plume themselves and chatter
until the daylight is sufficiently clear to show all objects
with distinctness. Of this circumstance I have taken
advantage several times to get good shots at them in

A NATURALIST. 1 1 9

this way. During the day time, having selected a spot
within proper distance of the tree frequented by them
in the morning, I have built with brushwood and pine
bushes a thick, close screen, behind which one or two
persons might move securely without being observed.
Proper openings, through which to level the guns, were
also made, as the slightest stir or noise could not be
made at the time of action, without a risk of rendering
all the preparations fruitless. The guns were all in or-
der and loaded before going to bed, and at an hour or
two before daylight, we repaired quietly to the field and
stationed ourselves behind the screen, where, having
mounted our guns at the loop-holes to be in perfect rea-
diness, we waited patiently for the daybreak. Soon after
the gray twilight of the dawn began to displace the
darkness, the voice of one of our expected visitants
would be heard from the distant forest, and shortly after
a single crow would slowly sail towards the solitary tree
and settle on its very summit. Presently a few more
would arrive singly, and in a little while small flocks
followed. Conversation among them is at first rather
limited to occasional salutations, but as the flock begins
to grow numerous, it becomes general and very animat-
ed, and by this time all that may be expected on this oc-
casion have arrived. This may be known also, by ob-
serving one or more of them descend to the ground,
and if the gunners do not now make the best of the oc-
casion, it will soon be lost, as the whole gang will pre-

120 RAMBLES OP

sently sail off, scattering as they go. However, we rare-
ly waited till there was a danger of their departure, but
as soon as the flock had fairly arrived and were still
crowded upon the upper parts of the tree, we pulled
triggers together, aiming at the thickest of the throng.
In this way, by killing and wounding them, with two or
three guns, a dozen or more would be destroyed. It
was of course needless to expect to find a similar oppor-
tunity in the same place for a long time afterwards, as
those which escaped had too good memories to return to
so disastrous a spot. By ascertaining other situations at
considerable distances, we could every now and then
obtain similar advantages over them.

About the years 1800, 1, 2, 3, 4, the crows were so
vastly accumulated and destructive in the state of Mary-
land, that the government, to hasten their diminution,
received their heads in payment of taxes, at the price of
three cents each. The store-keepers bought them of the
boys and shooters, who had no taxes to pay, at a rather
lower rate, or exchanged powder and shot for them. This
measure caused a great havoc to be kept up among them,
and in a few years so .much diminished the grievance,
that the price was withdrawn. Two modes of shooting
them in considerable numbers were followed and with
great success ; the one, that of killing them while on
the wing towards the roost, and the other attacking
them in the night when they had been for some hours
asleep. I have already mentioned the regularity with

A NATUBALIST. 1 2 1

which vast flocks move from various quarters of the
country to their roosting places every afternoon, and the
uniformity of the route they pursue. In cold weather,
when all the small bodies of water are frozen, and they
are obliged to protract their flight towards the bays or
sea, their return is a work of considerable labour, espe-
cially should a strong wind blow against them ; at this
season also, being rather poorly fed, they are of necessity
less vigorous. Should the wind be adverse, they fly as
near the earth as possible, and of this the shooters at the
time I allude to took advantage. A large number would
collect on such an afternoon, and station themselves close
along the foot-way of a high bank, over which the crows
were in the habit of flying ; and as they were in a great
degree screened from sight as the flock flew over, keep-
ing as low as possible because of the wind, their shots
were generally very effectual. The stronger was the
wind, the greater was their success. The crows that
were not injured found it very difficult to rise ; and those
that diverged laterally, only came nearer to gunners sta-
tioned in expectation of such movements. The flocks
were several hours in passing over, and as there was
generally a considerable interval between each company
of considerable size, the last arrived, unsuspicious of what
had been going on, and the shooters had time to recharge
their arms. But the grand harvest of crow heads was
derived from the invasion of their dormitories, which are
well worthy a particular description, and should be visited
11

122 RAMBLES OF

by every one who wishes to form a proper idea of the
number of these birds, that may be accumulated in a single
district. The roost is most commonly the densest pine
thicket that can be found, generally at no great distance
from some river, bay, or other sheet of water, which is
the last to freeze, or rarely is altogether frozen. To such
a roost, the crows, which are, during the day-time,
scattered over perhaps more than a hundred miles of cir-
cumference, wing their way every afternoon, and arrive
shortly after sunset. Endless columns pour in from
various quarters, and as they arrive pitch upon their ac-
customed perches, crowding closely together for the
benefit of the warmth and the shelter afforded by the
thick foliage of the pine. The trees are literally bent by
their weight, and the ground is covered for many feet in
depth by their dung, which by its gradual fermentation,
must also tend to increase the warmth of the roost.
Such roosts are known to be thus occupied for years,
beyond the memory of individuals ; and I know of one or
two, which the oldest residents in the quarter state to
have been known to their grandfathers, and probably had
been resorted to by the crows during several ages pre-
vious. There is one of great age and magnificent extent,
in the vicinity of Rock Creek, an arm of the Patapsco.
They are sufficiently numerous on the rivers opening
into the Chesapeake, and are every where similar in their
general aspect. Wilson has signalised such a roost at no
great distance from Bristol, Pa. and I know by observa-

A NATURALIST. 123

tion, that not less than a million of crows sleep there
nightly during the winter season.

To gather crow heads from the roost, a very large
party was made up, proportioned to the extent of surface
occupied by the dormitory. Armed with double barrelled
and duck guns, which threw a large charge of shot, the
company was divided into small parties, and these took
stations, selected during the day time, so as to surround
the roost as nearly as possible. A dark night was always
preferred, as the crows could not when alarmed fly far,
and the attack was delayed until full midnight. All
being at their posts, the firing was commenced by those
who were most advantageously posted, and followed up
successively by the others, as the affrighted crows sought
refuge in their vicinity. On every side the carnage then
raged fiercely, and there can scarcely be conceived a
more forcible idea of the horrors of a battle, than such a
scene afforded. The crows screaming with fright and
the pain of wounds, the loud deep roar produced by the
raising of their whole number in the air, the incessant
flashing and thundering of the guns, and the shouts of
their eager destroyers, all produced an effect which can
never be forgotten by any one who has witnessed it, nor
can it well be adequately comprehended by those who
have not. Blinded by the blaze of the powder, and be-
wildered by the thicker darkness that ensues, the crows
rise and settle again at a short distance, without being
able to withdraw from the field of danger ; and the san-

1 24 RAMBLES OF

guinary work is continued until the shooters are fatigued,
or the approach of daylight gives the survivors a chance
of escape. Then the work of collecting the heads from
the dead and wounded began, and this was a task of con-
siderable difficulty, as the wounded used their utmost
efforts to conceal and defend themselves. The bill and
half the front of the skull were cut off together, and strung
in sums for the tax-gatherer, and the product of the night
divided according to the nature of the party formed.
Sometimes the great mass of shooters were hired for the
night, and received no shares of scalps, having their am-
munition provided by the employers ; other parties were
formed of friends and neighbours, who clubbed for the
ammunition, and shared equally in the result.

During hard winters the crows' suffer severely, and
perish in considerable numbers from hunger, though
they endure a wonderful degree of abstinence without
much injury. When starved severely, the poor
wretches will swallow bits of leather, rope, rags, in short
any thing that appears to promise the slightest relief.
Multitudes belonging to the Bristol roost, perished dur-
ing the winter of 1828-9 from this cause. All the water
courses were solidly frozen, and it was distressing to
observe these starvelings every morning winging their
weary way towards the shores of the sea in hopes of
food, and again to see them toiling homewards in the
afternoon, apparently scarce able to fly.

In speaking of destroying crows, we have never ad-

A NATURALIST. 125

verted to the use of poison, which in their case is wholly
inadmissible on this account. Where crows are common
hogs generally run at large, and to poison the crows
would equally poison them; the crows would die, and
fall to the ground, where they would certainly be eaten
by the hogs.

Crows, when caught young, learn to talk plainly, if
pains be taken to repeat certain phrases to them, and
they become exceedingly impudent and troublesome.
Like all of their tribe, they will steal and hide silver or
other bright objects, of which they can make no possible

11*

REMINISCENCES

OF A

VOYAGE TO INDIA

REYNELL COATES, M. D.

REMINISCENCES.

NO. I.

The American public need not be reminded of the folly
of those tourists, who, after a week's residence in a capi-
tal city, take passage in a line of coaches, and hastily
circumambulating a small portion of a great continent,
return to launch out into profound disquisitions on na-
tional character and the mutability of governments. I
am not of this school ; but as no one can travel round
two thirds of the circumference of our globe, either by
land or sea, without acquiring many facts, and making
many observations highly interesting to those who quietly
enjoy the sweets of social intercourse around the paternal
hearth, I hope that these detached reminiscences, while
they contribute to my own happiness by recalling scenes
of grandeur and of beauty which I can never hope to
revisit, may also prove a harmless recreation,

130 REMINISCENCES OF

MINUTE ANIMALS OF THE OCEAN.

The innumerable tribes of insects which swarm in
every part of the world, delighting us by the brilliancy
of their colouring, or tormenting us with their attacks
upon our persons or our property, although their armies
sometimes render whole countries uninhabitable, destroy-
ing every blade of grass in their career ; even these seem-
ingly interminable hosts must yield the palm in number,
beauty, every thing except destructiveness, to the sky-
tinted denizens of the ocean. Every leaf of sea-weed,
every fragment of floating timber, teems with life in some
of its most interesting forms, and the blue expanse of
waves is every where studded with animated gems, which
sail along its surface or lie hidden in its bosom.

The seaman, as the vessel hurries along, catches occa-
sional glimpses of misty specks floating beneath him,
which, to his careless eye, appear like the spawn of fishes,
or the slime washed from their bodies, yet in these un-
promising and neglected atoms, closer examination dis-
covers beings whose delicacy of structure defies the
pencil, and whose tints are rivalled only by those of a
summer's evening.

It is much to be regretted that many minds capable of
enjoying, in the highest degree, those pleasures which
may be drawn from every department of natural history,
are arrested on the threshold of the study by the dry and
technical systems, which are but the common-place books

A VOYAGE TO INDIA. 131

of the science, but which are too generally regarded as
the science itself. Some knowledge of these systems
seems indispensable to the grand and general views which
constitute the chief interest of many departments of na-
ture ; but the minute inhabitants of the ocean possess a
charm for every eye, an interest peculiarly their own.
In observing their beauties and their manners, the tra-
veller would find delightful occupation, and the tedium
of the sea would be forgotten.

Much of my time was employed in catching these
minute animals with a net of bunting secured to a cane
twelve feet in length, with which practice soon rendered
me so adroit, that little escaped me that floated within
three feet of the surface. I cannot hope, by mere de-
scription, to inspire others with the same enthusiastic
admiration which I felt in a personal examination of the
wonders of my net; but I trust that, in introducing
some of these new acquaintances to your readers, I shall
not be accused of making a burdensome addition to their
circle.

The vast tract of waters constituting the Gulf stream,
stretching itself along the coast of North America, lies
like a huge ocean desert, shunned even by the fish,
which are seen but rarely within its limits ; but on the
farther side a counter current travels at a slower pace in
the opposite direction. The surface of this current is
thickly covered with masses of sea-weed and other float-
ing bodies, swept by the stream from the shores of the

132 REMINISCENCES OF

Gulf of Mexico and the southern states, and collected in
the eddies. Each little tuft, if carefully taken, and placed
in a tumbler or basin of salt water, will display a number
of beautiful shrimps, spotted, chequered, or striped with
every shade of colouring ; a variety of minute crabs, little
shells, and not unfrequently fish, in comparison with
which the minrioes of our creeks are leviathans. Most of
these various tribes which have been carried by the cur-
rent from their native shores, would speedily perish in
the unfathomable depths of their own element, if deprived
for a long time of the support afforded by their little
vessel.

One would suppose that a voyage of three thousand
miles, performed in company, and within the narrow
confines of a tuft of leaves, would be sufficient to es-
tablish a good understanding in the little community;
but, alas ! the natural propensities to violence and plunder,
which not even the lofty attribute of human reason can
control, here rage with unrestrained violence ; no sooner
is this mimic world confined within the precincts of the
tumbler or the basin, than the whole vessel displays a
system of inveterate warfare. In vain do the smaller
shrimps dart through the labyrinth of leaves to elude the
pursuit of the crabs ; they are speedily torn in pieces, or
driven from their shelter to become the prey of some vo-
racious fish, which, flying before the persecution of its
larger brethren, thus repays the hospitality of those in
whose dominions it seeks obscurity and safety. But this

A VOYAGE TO IKDIA. 1 33

ingratitude seldom passes unpunished. Pent within nar-
row bounds, and unable to elude pursuit by shooting be-
yond the grasp of its insulted protectors, a desperate con-
flict ensues between the fish and the crabs, and in a few
hours nothing of the animated scene survives, except
some two or three mutilated combatants, who, no longer
possessed of their dangerous weapons of offence, or ex-
hausted with wounds, are fain to make a peaceable meal
upon the carcasses of their former associates. What
moral might the observer extract from the high daring
and noble prowess of these little aquatics, none of which
ever acquire the paltry magnitude of three quarters of
an inch ! What exquisite similes might be drawn from
such a fertile source to embellish the pages of history, or
to be sounded upon the harp of flattery, to swell the
festive raptures of the hero !

Nothing is more striking to the naturalist than the
contrast between the grandeur and the immensity of
power displayed by the angry waves around him, and
the delicate and fragile forms which crowd their surface.

The crest of a billow, which causes the tough fir-ribbed
vessel to tremble beneath it like a child under the rod of
its tutor, passes harmlessly over myriads of beings, which,
when removed from their native element, dissolve under
the fervour of the sun, or break in pieces by their own
weight. Yet, unobtrusive as are these lower links in
the scale of nature, escaping by their very humility that
destruction which so often overwhelms the proud lord of
12

134 REMINISCENCES OF

the creation in spite of all his science and his strength
they are often individually dressed in beauty before which
the lily would fade, and the rose hide its blushes; and,
collectively, they produce some of the most sublime phe-
nomena, which have even astonished the philosopher,
building up islands in the midst of the deep, or, in mimic
sportiveness, alarming the mariner with the appearance
of unreal shoals, and wakening the lightning of the wa-
ters to increase the brilliancy of moonlight, or to render
more terrific the gloom of the midnight tempest.

This picture may appear too glowing to many, but in
my next I will endeavour to establish its correctness.

C.

A VOYAGE TO INDIA. 135

NO. II.

MOLLUSCJS. FALSE SHOALS.

Those who have sought relief from the summer heats
at Long Branch or Cape May, have probably noticed,
in their ramblings along the beach, certain gelatinous
transparent masses deposited by the receding tide upon
the sands. They resemble very large plano-convex
lenses, and are devoid of colour, except in a few minute
points, which appeal like grains of yellow sand, or the
eggs of some shells embedded in their substance. This
has led many to consider them as the spawn of some

marine auiuiul.

If one of these gellies be placed in a tub of brine im-
mediately after it reaches the shore, the observer will be
surprised to find it possessed of animation. The supe-
rior, or convex part, will expand like the top of an um-
brella, and from its under surface several fringed and
leaf-like membranes will be developed. The remains
of numerous threads, or tendrils, will float out from the
margin of the umbrella, following the motions of the
animal as it swims around the tub. These threads are

136 REMINISCENCES OF

often several feet in length before they are broken by
the sand ; they are probably employed both to entice
and secure the prey, and they produce a sharp, stinging
sensation, when applied to the skin. It is from the ap-
pearance and offensive power of these last organs, that
seamen have given the animal the title of the sea nettle,
and naturalists the generic name medusa.

I have offered this rude description of the medusa, as
a familiar example of the class of animated beings
which are the subjects of the following remarks. They
are all alike gelatinous and transparent, and many of
them melt and flow away when exposed in the open air
to the direct rays of the sun.

Of all the tribes of molluscse which are scattered over eve-
ry part of the ocean, the most splendid and the best known
is the Portuguese man-of-war (physalia). This is an
oblong animated sack of air, elongated at one extremity
into a conical neck, and surmounted by a membraneous
expansion running nearly the whole length of the body,
and rising above into a semicircular sail, which can be
expanded or contracted to a considerable extent, at the
pleasure of the animal. From beneath the body are
suspended from ten to fifty or more little tubes, from
half an inch to an inch in length, open at their lower
extremity, and formed like the flower of the blue bottle.
These have been regarded as temporary receptacles for
food, like the first stomach of cattle ; but as the animal
is destitute of any visible mouth or alimentary canal,

A VOYAGE TO INDIA. 137

and as I have frequently seen fish in their cavities ap-
parently half digested, I cannot but consider them as
proper stomachs; nor indeed is it a greater paradox in
zoology that an animal should possess many indepen-
dent stomachs, than that the strange carniverous vege-
table, the saracinea, should make use of its leaves appa-
rently for a similar purpose.

From the centre of this group of stomachs depends a
little cord, never exceeding the fourth of an inch in
thickness, and often forty times as long as the body.

The size of the Portuguese man-of-war varies from
half an inch to six inches in length. When it is in
motion, the sail is accommodated to the force of the
breeze, and the elongated neck is curved upward, giving
to the animal a form strongly resembling the little glass
swans which we sometimes see swimming in goblets.

It is not the form, however, whieh constitutes the
chief beauty of this little navigator. The lower part of
the body and the neck are devoid of all colour, except a
faint irridescence in reflected lights, and they are so
perfectly transparent that the finest print is not ob-
scured when viewed through them. The back becomes
gradually tinged as we ascend, with the finest and most
delicate blue that can be imagined ; the base of the sail
equals the purest sky in depth and beauty of tint ; the
summit is of the most splendid red, and the central part
is shaded by the gradual intermixture of these colours
through all the intermediate grades of purples. Drawn
12*

138 REMINISCENCES OF

as it were upon a ground-work of mist, the tints have
an aerial softness far beyond the reach of art, and war-
ranting- the seemingly imaginative description given at
the close of the first number.

The group of stomachs is less transparent, and al-
though the hue is the same as that of the back, they
are, on this account incomparably less elegant. By their
weight and form they fill the double office of a keel and
ballast, while the cord-like appendage, which floats out
for yards behind, is called by seamen the cable.

The mode in which the animal secures his prey has
been a subject of much speculation, for the fish and
crabs that are frequently found within the little tubes,
are often large enough to tear them in pieces could they
retain their natural vigour during the contest. De-
ceived by the extreme pain which is felt when the ca-
ble is brought inter contact with the back of the hand,
naturalists have concluded, I think too hastily, that this
organ secretes a poisonous or acrid fluid, by which it
benumbs any unfortunate fish or other animal that ven-
tures within its toils, allured by the hope of making a
meal upon what, in its ignorance, it has mistaken for a
worm. The secret will be better explained by a more
careful examination of the organ itself. The chord is
composed of a narrow layer of contractile fibres, scarcely
visible when relaxed, on account of its transparency.
If the animal be large, this layer of fibres will some-
times extend itself to the length of four or five yards. A

A VOYAGE TO INDIA. 1 39

spiral line of blue bead-like bodies, less than the head of
a pin, revolves around the cable from end to end, and
under the microscope these beads appear covered with
minute prickles, so hard and sharp, that they will rea-
dily enter the substance of wood, adhering with such
pertinacity that the cord can rarely be detached without
breaking.

It is to these prickles that the man-of-war owes its
power of destroying animals much its superior in
strength and activity. When any thing becomes im-
paled upon the cord, the contractile fibres are called
into action, and rapidly shrink from many feet in length
to less than the same number of inches, bringing the
prey within reach of the little tubes, by one of which
it is immediately swallowed.

This weapon, so insignificant in appearance, is yet
sufficiently formidable even to man. I had once the
misfortune to become entangled with the cable of a very
large man-of-war while swimming in the open ocean,
and amply did it avenge its fellows, who now sleep in
my cabinet robbed at once of life and beauty. The
pain which it inflicted was almost insupportable for
some time, nor did it entirely cease for twenty-four
hours.

I might now proceed to describe many analogous ani-
mals scarcely inferior in interest, but it is time to no-
tice some individuals of another tribe, residing beneath
the surface, and therefore less generally known.

140 EEMINISCENCES OF

The grandest of these is the beroe. In size and form
it precisely resembles a purse, the mouth, or orifice, an-
swering to one of the modern metallic clasps. It is
perfectly transparent, and in order to distinguish its
filmy outlines, it is necessary to place it in a tumbler of
brine held between the observer and the light. In cer-
tain directions the whole body appears faintly irrides-
cent, but there are several longitudinal narrow lines
which reflect the full rich tints of the rainbow in the
most vivid manner, for ever varying and mingling the
hues, even while the animal remains at rest. Under
the microscope these lines display a succession of innu-
merable coloured scales or minute fins, which are kept
unceasingly in motion, thus producing the play of co-
lours by continually changing the angle of reflection.

The movements of the beroe are generally retrograde,
and are not aided by the coloured scales, but depend
upon the alternate contraction and dilatation of the
mouth. The lips are never perfectly closed, and the
little fish and shrimps which play around them are con-
tinually entering and leaving them at pleasure. The
animal is dependent for its food upon such semi-anima-
ted substances as it draws within its grasp by moving
slowly backwards in the water, and retains them in con-
sequence of their own feebleness and inability to escape
the weakest of snares.

Another tribe of the sea-purses, (salpa,) though much
smaller than the beroe, are more complex in structure,

A VOYAGE TO I3DIA. 141

and possess a higher interest in consequence of the sin-
gular habits of some of the species. They are double
sacks, resembling the beroc in general form, but desti-
tute of irridescence.

The outer sack, or mantle, rarely exceeds an inch in
length, and is commonly about half as wide. The inner
sack is much smaller, and the interval between these
forms a cavity for the water which they breathe, and
for some of the viscera. Their visible organs are a trans-
parent heart, which can only be seen in the strongest
light ; a splendid double row of whitish bead-like cavities
forming a spiral line near one extremity, and supposed
to be either lungs or ovaries; numerous broad, flat,
pearly muscles, barely distinguished by their mistiness,
and an alimentary canal as fine as horse-hair, with a
slight enlargement at one spot, which has been called
a stomach. This enlargement resembles both in size
and colour a grain of sand. From the base of the ani-
mal arises two longer and four or five shorter conical
spines of jelly, curved into hooks at the points, by means
of which numerous individuals attach themselves to-
gether in double rows like the leaflets of a pinnated leaf.
Cords of this kind, composed of forty or fifty animals,
were often taken, but they separate and reattach them-
selves at pleasure.

To the gregarious habits of this little mollusque we
owe a very singular and striking phenomena, which
I have never seen noticed by naturalists, although

142 REMINISCENCES OF

we frequently witnessed it near the Cape of Good
Hope.

The animals are occasionally found associated to-
gether in such countless myriads that the sea is literally
filled with them, sometimes over three or four square
miles of surface, and to the depth of several fathoms.
The yellow spots which have been described, being the
only coloured portions of their body, give to the whole
tract the appearance of a shoal or sand bank at some
distance below the surface. The deception is height-
ened by the greater smoothness of the water at these
places, particularly in calm weather, for so closely are
the animals crowded together, that the water is rendered
in a manner less fluid ; the smaller billows break around
the margin and are lost, while the heavy waves of the
southern ocean are somewhat opposed in their progress,
and take on in a slight degree the usual appearance of
the ground swell. There can be but little doubt that
many of the numerous shoals laid down in the charts
of this region, but which have never been seen by any
but the supposed discoverers, have been immense banks
of these gregarious molluscse. In sailing through a tract
of this description, in which the progress of the ship
was very sensibly retarded, I have dipt up with the
ship's bucket a greater bulk of the animals than of the
water in which they were suspended. How wonderful
are the effects produced by the minute links of creation !

C.

A VOYAGE TO INDIA. 143

C. wishes those of his friends who have devoted them-
selves to the study of natural history, to understand dis-
tinctly that the anatomical and chemical terms con-
tained in these essays, are employed, not in their
scientific but in their popular sense, and also that in
drawing the organs of the sal pa he has followed La-
marck and Cuvier, without committing himself by any
opinions upon the correctness of their generic descrip-
tions, as applicable to this particular species.

144 REMINISCENCES OF

NO. III.

PHOSPHORESCENCE OF THE OCEAN.

As the glow-worm and the fire-fly enliven the night
by land, so do many of the mollusc® and other marine
animals kindle their mimic fires by sea — but on a far
grander and more imposing scale.

If, during a dark night, we watch attentively the ad-
vance and retreat of the breakers on the beach, we shall
generally perceive the crest of each billow to be illumi-
nated by a faint flash at the moment of its fall ; and after
the wave subsides, the beach will be spangled with mi-
nute but brilliant specs, which shine for a few moments
and then disappear. These lights will convey an idea
of what is meant by the phosphorescence of the^ocean.

At all times, and in nearly all situations, the spray
thrown up by the bow of the vessel is thickly strewed
during the night with little silvery stars, that dance
and whirl about among the eddies, until they are lost
in the distance. These luminous particles are generally
so small that they are caught with difficulty, and so
perfectly transparent, that they can scarcely be distin-

A VOYAGE TO INDIA. 145

guished from the drops of brine adhering to the net.
Their own radiance, by which they are visible in their
native element, is soon lost when brought into the air,
for it ceases instantly on the death of the animal. The
few specimens which I have examined were either gela-
tinous molluscse or microscopic shrimps ; the former
being luminous throughout their entire substance, and
the latter, like the glow-worm, emitting an intermittent
light from a lantern near the tail.

Such were the appearances noticed in most parts of
the North Atlantic Ocean, excepting the Gulf stream.
The fretful waves of this region, vexed as it is by per-
petual squalls, appear to be wrapped in total darkness.
But in the tropical regions, and throughout the vast ex-
panse of the Southern and Indian Oceans, the grandeur
and sublimity of the night scene were often beyond
description. The vivid hues of " the double headed
shot clouds," which rise like immense mountains from
the water of the western horizon, seemed to fade into
twilight only to give place to a still more beautiful illu-
mination in the bosom of the waves. The bow of the
vessel scattered far around a blaze of light, which shone
brilliantly under the brightest moon, and was often suffi-
ciently intense to enable us to read upon the deck.
Leaning over the stern, our track resembled a vast
trough of fire, studded with innumerable floating lanterns
and stars, such as fall from an exploding sky-rocket. In
the eddies, the whirling of these bodies produced long
13

1 46 REMINISCENCES OF

streams of light like serpents drawn in flame, and oc-
casionally immense globes of fire would roll along be-
neath the keel, at the depth of several fathoms, yet so
intensely bright that the little rudder fish were distinctly
visible sporting beneath the cabin windows. These
globes are generally as large as a flour barrel, and ac-
cording to Peron and Lesueur, they are sometimes seen
to reach the enormous diameter of twenty feet. I had
once the gratification to observe one of these animals
within a foot of the surface. It was a medusa, large
enough to fill a bushel basket, visible in every fibre by
its own illumination.

At these times the crest of every wave resembles a
long line of ignited phosphorus, and every dip of the
oar, or plunge of the bucket, produces a flash of light,
and scatters scintillations on every side. Even the
larger fish, when they approach the vessel, are followed
by a luminous path like the tail of a comet, and they
are often struck with the harpoon, guided by this ap-
pearance alone.

The sea at times resembles a field of snow or milk,
and Peron asserts that it is often tinged with prismatic
colours, vary ing at every moment ; but these phenomena
were not witnessed in our voyage.

The strangest of all the modes in which the phospho-
rescence of the ocean is exhibited, was witnessed near
the island of Tristan D'Acunha, under circumstances
too impressive to be forgotten.

A VOYAGE TO INDIA. 147

The night was dark and damp, and the breeze too
light to steady the vessel. She rolled heavily over the
waves, making it difficult for a landsman to walk the
deck. A fog bank, which hung around the northern
horizon at sunset, now swept slowly down towards us.
The captain ordered the light sails furled in expectation
of a squall, and we stood leaning together over the rail,
watching the mist, which approached more and more
rapidly, till it resembled, in the increasing darkness, an
immense wall extending from the water to the clouds,
and seemed threatening to crush us beneath it. Just at
this moment, a flash, like a broad sheet of lightning,
spread itself over the surface of the ocean as far as the
eye could reach — five or six times, at intervals of a few
seconds, the flash was repeated, and then the vessel was
enveloped in the fog. The breeze quickened — the bustle
of preparation attracted the attention of every one, and
in a few moments we were bounding along at the rate
of ten miles arfhour, over waves sparkling in the clear
moonshine, but the " lightning of the waters" had
ceased. I have always regretted that I did not ascer-
tain by what animal this most singular phenomenon
was produced, but the wild interest of the scene ban-
ished every thought of the kind. In the course of the
night we passed through several beds of the salpa, and
it is very probable that the flashes were produced by
these little creatures, induced, by a wonderful instinct,
to act in concert for some inscrutable purpose.

148 REMINISCENCES OF

There are few phenomena in nature which have led
to a greater diversity of opinion among modern men of
science, than the luminous appearance of the ocean dur-
ring the night. Some have regarded it as the effect of
electricity, produced by the friction of the waves ; others
as the product of a species of fermentation in the water,
occurring accidentally in certain places. Many have
attributed it to the well known phosphorescence of pu-
trid fish, or to the decomposition of their slime and
exuvia, and a few only to the real cause — the voluntary
illumination of many distinct species of marine animals,
generally analogous to the tribes which were described
in the former number of these Reminiscences. Even
those authors who have acknowledged the agency of
animal life in producing this wonderful appearance, have
been in a manner compelled, by its universality, and by
the almost incredible multiplication of beings which it
infers, to aomit the probable co-operation of other

My own observation has led to the conclusion, that
the phosphoresence of the ocean is due solely to the pe-
culiar instinct of the molluscae, and some genera of the
Crustacea.

The electrical hypothesis is certainly fallacious, for
were we even to grant the possibility of producing an
electric light in an agitated fluid, which is itself an im-
perfect conductor, similar to that occasioned by the at-
trition of white sugar or glass in the dark, the acknow-

A VOYAGE TO INDIA. 149

ledged physical law, that like causes produce like
effects, would lead us to expect an uniform diffusion of
the phosphoresence over a considerable extent of water
under the same latitude and longitude ; but this is not
the case. A ship will often be enveloped for a few mo-
ments in so bright an illumination that a book may be
read upon the deck, and at the next instant she may be
involved in almost total darkness. Again, electricity
is eliminated with the greatest facility in a cold and
dry atmosphere ; but the phosphorescence of the ocean
is most considerable in tropical climates, nor is it dimin-
ished by storms or rain. The supposition of a fermen-
tation of the surface is equally unsatisfactory, for such
a process would lead to an equable diffusion of light over
the whole space in which it acted. But the luminous
matter is almost always seen in distinct masses or par-
ticles ; and the few exceptions to this rule which have
been observed, do not admit of an explanation according
to the known effects of fermentation. The light elimi-
nated by putrid fish furnishes a more plausible theory,
but the very wide extent of the illumination, is, of itself,
sufficient to prove its incorrectness. It has been already
shown to what an incalculable amount the living inha-
bitants of the ocean increase, but the reverse is true of
the dead. The air and the water swarm with innume-
rable depurators, who devour every thing that dies,
whether beneath the surface or upon it. The albatross,
the stormy petrel, the Cape pigeon, some of the gulls,

150 REMINISCENCES OF

and other marine fowls, which are constantly soaring
by thousands over every sea, seize upon all unprotected
animals, dead or living, which remain within their
reach. The three former birds will follow the ship for
days during calm weather, to share the offals thrown
over by the cook ; and so ravenous is their appetite, that
they are frequently caught with the hook and line baited
with meat, and trolled in the wake of the vessel. I have
frequently seen them bathing their feathers in the
grease which floats around the refuse of the camboose,
and skimming it up with their spoon-shaped bills with
every demonstration of pleasure. Those bodies that
sink by their gravity fall a prey to the fish, and those
that are too minute to attract the attention of the
larger animals, are speedily devoured by the molluscse.
Thus the waters are preserved in a high degree of pu-
rity, and probably there does not remain sufficient pu-
trescent matter in a cubic league of water to render
luminous a cubic yard. In passing over an extent of
ocean greater than the whole circumference of the
earth, I did not see a single dead animal of any kind.

The purpose for which this phosphorescence is de-
signed, is lost in conjecture; but when we recollect that
fish are attracted to the net by the lights of the fisher-
men, and that many of the marine shells are said to leave
their native element to crawl around a fire built upon the
beach, are we not warranted in supposing that the ani-
mals of which we have been speaking, are provided

A VOYAGE TO INDIA. 151

with their luminous properties, in order to entice their
prey within their grasp ?

In quitting the subject of the minute animals of the
ocean, I should not neglect to refer the curious to three
engravings in the volume of plates to the Voyage aux
Terres Australes, by Peron and Lesueur, where may be
seen the happiest efforts of the pencil in delineating
some of these interesting beings. The work is con-
tained in the Philadelphia library, and will amply repay
the trouble of a visit. C.

FfNIS.